This is Space They Cannot Touch
by arysa13
Summary: Clarke runs away and ends up getting a job as Bellamy's maid/housekeeper
1. Runaway

**I was watching Devious Maids and Poldark and then this happened I don't even know.**

* * *

Ever since she was a little girl, Clarke's way of dealing with anything slightly unpleasant was to run away.

When she was ten and her mom made her take ballet, even though she was terrible and she hated it. When she was thirteen and she hated school because she didn't have any friends. When she was sixteen and her dad died in a car accident while her mom was behind the wheel. When she was seventeen and her mom started dating Marcus Kane, so soon after Jake had died. Somehow those problems had worked themselves out, after she'd avoided them at length.

So, that's why she was confident that running away was the best option this time, too. And that's how she came to be sitting on the roof of her car on the side of the road, out of gas, the sun setting fast. Her phone was totally flat so she couldn't even call for help, not that she particularly wanted to. All she could do was wait and hope some kind soul would drive past and take pity on her.

She was absentmindedly braiding little braids in her hair to pass the time when an old pick up truck slowed as it approached and pulled up just behind her. Clarke jumped down from the hood of the car and slipped her hands into the back pockets of her denim shorts as a woman got out of the truck.

"You need a hand?" the woman asked as she walked over to Clarke. She was absolutely gorgeous, Clarke couldn't help but notice. Long dark hair and dark eyes framed by generous eyelashes and her bronze skin was totally flawless, though she didn't appear to be wearing any make up. "I know a great mechanic," the woman grinned when Clarke didn't answer right away. "It's me. I'm the great mechanic."

Clarke cleared her throat as she realised she'd been staring a little too long.

"Um, yeah," she replied. "I'm out of gas." You'd think after years of experience in running away she'd have learnt to fill up the tank and charge her phone before she skipped town, but yet here she was. Her mind had been on other things.

"Damn," the woman nodded. "I can't fill you up but I can give you a tow," she offered.

"Thanks, that would be great," Clarke nodded gratefully.

"Great! I'm Raven, by the way," she held out her hand for Clarke to shake.

"Clarke," Clarke responded, taking Raven's outstretched hand.

She offered to help Raven with hooking up the car but Raven waved her away, and in no time she was in the passenger seat of Raven's truck, speeding along the highway.

"Where are we going?" Clarke asked.

"I live not too far from here in a town called Ark Hill. You ever heard of it?" Raven asked. Clarke shook her head. "I'm not surprised," Raven chuckled. "There's nothing there, really. Where are you headed?"

"I'm not sure actually," Clarke replied. Raven glanced at her and Clarke avoided her gaze.

"Running away?" Raven guessed as she turned off the highway and onto a much smaller road.

"Yeah. And I'm not going back either," Clarke said, a little defensively. _Not this time._ Raven seemed to notice Clarke's defensive attitude.

"Don't worry, I'm not going to lecture you or command you to go back home," Raven smiled. "I ran away too. That's how I ended up here. Ark Hill." Clarke looked out the window as farm land turned into houses.

"I don't see any hills," Clarke observed.

"It's just a name," Raven laughed. She pulled up at a gas station and they got out. Raven unhooked Clarke's car and Clarke filled it up. "I've gotta go," Raven said, one hand on the door to her truck. "Good luck, Clarke," she smiled before getting in and driving away.

Clarke paid in cash, because although she hadn't remembered to get gas or charge her phone before she left, she had stopped at an ATM to withdraw as much cash as she could so her mom couldn't track her cards to find out where she was. She had left a note for her mom, so she'd know that she was okay (she wasn't completely heartless), but although Clarke had asked Abby not to come after her, she knew her mother would most likely disregard her wishes.

It was dark out now, and she eyed a group of boys who were paying her a little too much attention warily as she got back into her car. Now what? She needed to find somewhere to spend the night. She didn't really want to sleep in her tiny car. She wished she'd asked Raven if there was a motel or something nearby. She assumed there had to be at least one around. Ark Hill was small, but not that small. She'd just drive around until she found it.

As she drove around town she realised that the town was a lot bigger than she'd originally thought. She'd driven through the main shopping area, though all the shops were shut, and around some residential area and was yet to find anywhere she could stay. And now, she realised as she surveyed her surroundings, she was totally lost. She had no idea which way she'd come into town and she couldn't remember which way the gas station was to ask for directions.

"Fuck," she muttered under her breath. She kept driving, though she didn't have a clue where she was going or what she was going to do. She saw a group of guys walking along the sidewalk and she wondered if it was the same ones as before and if that meant she was close to the gas station. Should she stop and ask them? She didn't have to get out of the car and if they looked like they wished her ill then she could just drive off. She decided to risk it.

She pulled up beside them and left the engine running as she wound the passenger side window down and called out to them.

"Excuse me," she called, though they all already had their attention turned on her. "Could you tell me where the gas station is? Or a motel?" she asked.

"Yeah," one guy answered, after a moment. He approached the car and put his head in the window. "If you go back the way you came then take the first left you'll get to the gas station. If you keep heading this way you'll get to the motel," he told her. Clarke was relieved he was helping her out instead of trying to murder her.

"Thanks, so much," she said gratefully as the guy removed his head from inside her car. She was about to wind the window back up when she heard a click and she whipped her head around to see one of the guys opening the car door. She tried to slam her foot on the accelerator, but she accidentally hit the brake instead and then the guy was dragging her out of the car kicking and screaming while a friend hopped in the passenger side. Clarke tried to bite her captor but he elbowed her in the face. He threw her onto the bitumen forcefully, while the other guys got in the car.

"Where's the money?" he yelled at her.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Clarke spat.

"Don't play fucking dumb with me, you cunt. We saw you with a big wad of cash. Where is it?" he kicked her in the side to illustrate his point.

"I don't have any money," Clarke groaned. If they were going to take her car she needed all the money she had.

"Liar," he kicked her again and she was about to retaliate when he pulled a gun on her. He knelt down beside her, still pointing the gun at her as he rifled through her clothes, trying to find the money, spending a little too long groping at her chest. She spat at him, hitting him in the face, a risky move when he had a gun at her head. He growled at her and hit her with the gun.

"You have three seconds to give me the money," he told her. "One…"

"It's in my shoe," she told him reluctantly.

"Hurry up, Murphy!" one of the guys in the car yelled. "Someone's coming!"

Clarke and Murphy both glanced up to see someone had just pulled up across the road and was coming towards them.

"Hey!" a deep voice yelled. "What's going on?"

"Shit, it's Blake!" the guy in the passenger seat yelled at Murphy. Murphy quickly pulled off Clarke's shoes and took them with him, as well as the cash they held, as he jumped into the driver's seat of her car and sped off. The man who had yelled out was at Clarke's side then.

"Are you alright?" he asked, kneeling down beside her.

"Yes," Clarke replied, but she burst into tears the second the word was out of her mouth.

"Can you stand?" the man asked her. Clarke nodded, though he probably couldn't see her very well in the dark. He held out his hand and helped her to her feet.

"We should go to the cops. I know who those guys are," he said.

"Okay," Clarke replied, still sobbing.

"Do you think you need to go to the hospital?" he asked her.

"No, I think I'm okay," Clarke sniffled.

"Come on, I'll take you to the police station," he offered. Clarke nodded and followed him to his car. The car was really nice. She didn't know what make or model seeing as she wasn't really into cars, but it was definitely expensive. She wondered why a guy who obviously had so much money was living in some shithole town instead of a big city.

"What's your name?" he asked her once they were in the car.

"Clarke," Clarke responded. She wasn't crying anymore but she was pretty sure she'd start again if she had to talk too much.

"Clarke what?"

"Clarke Griffin," she answered.

"Bellamy Blake," he returned. He wasn't exactly warm and comforting. She thought someone else would probably spend more time making sure she was okay. Maybe hug her or at least hand her a tissue. But, regardless of his seemingly uncaring manner, she was grateful for his help.

He came inside with her when they got to the station.

"This girl has just been mugged and had her car stolen," he told the cop at the front desk.

"Alright, well, just wait over there and we'll get to you in a second," the cop nodded. Clarke expected Bellamy to leave then, but he walked over to the waiting area and sat with her.

"Why are you in Ark Hill?" he asked her. Clarke just shrugged, glancing at him out the corner of her eye. Now that they were inside in the light she could make out his striking features and she wanted to study them further, but she couldn't seem to meet his eye.

"Okay, we don't have to talk," he said after a long silence and he settled back against the wall and closed his eyes, giving Clarke a chance to gaze at him uninterrupted. He was older than her, by how much she couldn't say. He was dressed simply but his clothes were nice and she found herself wondering what he did for a living. It looked like he'd tried to tame his dark curls with some kind of hair product but it didn't really seem to be working for him.

"Blake," a cop walked out and gestured for the two of them to follow him. He led them to his desk where he introduced himself as Officer Miller and began asking Clarke a lot of questions about what had happened. She answered them all, managing to not cry again.

"Can you describe what any of them looked like?" Officer Miller asked.

"There's no need, Miller. I know who they were," Bellamy interjected.

"Who?" Miller prompted.

"John Murphy and his gang," Bellamy replied. Miller nodded and wrote it down.

"Alright, we'll look into it. You can go now," he said.

Bellamy walked with Clarke outside into the warm night air.

"Have you got somewhere to go?" he asked her.

"No," she sighed. Bellamy nodded thoughtfully for a moment.

"How long are you staying?" he asked. Clarke looked at him and screwed up her mouth.

"I don't know," she replied.

"I have a proposition for you," Bellamy said after a moment of thought. "I'm looking for a maid and housekeeper. Live in. You can have the job for as long as you want it. If not, I have a spare bed for tonight," he offered. Clarke thought for a moment, thought there wasn't really much to think about. She didn't want to go home. She had no car and no money and who knows how long it would take them to track down Murphy's gang. She had no future plans.

"Okay," she nodded.

"Okay?" Bellamy repeated. Clarke nodded again. "Alright. You're over eighteen, right? I don't need to call your parents and make sure this is okay with them?"

"I'm eighteen," Clarke assured him.

"Alright. Let's go," he unlocked the car and the two of them climbed in and drove to his house in silence.


	2. Daylight

Maybe she should have been more wary about this guy who randomly decided to help some random girl he found on the side of the road and then offered her a job and somewhere to live. She didn't know anything about him, after all. She didn't know how old he was or what he did for a living. Maybe he was a drug lord or a serial killer. Somehow she just instinctively trusted him though. Maybe it was because he'd helped her, or maybe it was because he was gorgeous. Either way, she'd basically put her future in his hands, and she didn't regret it yet.

It wasn't like he knew anything about her either. Except her name. And yet he was accepting her into his home no questions asked. He was probably the strangest man she'd ever met.

They drove up a driveway to a darkened house. All Clarke could really tell about it in the dark was that it was big. Bigger than the house she and her mom lived in back home. She wondered if Bellamy lived there all alone or whether he had family. She glanced down at his hand resting on the gear stick but it didn't look like he was wearing a ring. Not married then.

Bellamy drove the car into the garage and got out of the car, leaving Clarke to follow cautiously. He didn't say anything to her as they walked through the house, an he didn't bother turning any lights on until he opened the door to a bedroom and gestured her inside.

"This is your room. There's a bathroom across the hall. I have things to do so I'll see you in the morning and tell you about what's expected of you. You can have tomorrow to rest and you can start on Monday," he told her. Clarke nodded and Bellamy left her alone.

She shut the door and stared at the room for a moment. Her suitcase had obviously been taken with the car, so she didn't have pyjamas or a toothbrush or basically any essential items. She didn't even have her phone anymore, not that she'd been planning to use it.

She had no idea what time it was, but it was dark out so she figured it was late enough to go to bed. She had nothing better to do anyway.

Sighing emphatically, Clarke pulled off her shoes and climbed into the bed in her clothes before falling asleep almost immediately.

* * *

She woke the next morning in an unfamiliar bed in an unfamiliar room and temporarily forgot where she was and what had happened. Her stomach clenched when she thought about the situation she'd gotten herself into. In the light of day, accepting some random man's job offer didn't seem like such a good idea. Yet, she wasn't willing to back out now. But maybe he had changed his mind. She figured she should probably go and find him.

Feeling nervous, she slipped out of bed and into the hall, still in last night's clothes, seeing as she had nothing else to wear. Glancing both ways, she turned right and padded down the hall, not really knowing where to start looking seeing as she had no idea about the layout of the house. She thought she could hear music coming from somewhere within the house, so she followed her ears, eventually leading her to the kitchen.

There was a girl about her age, buttering toast and blasting music from her iphone. Bellamy's girlfriend maybe? She was dressed up, like she had an important business meeting to attend, her dark hair pulled back into a neat pony tail.

Clarke wondered if she should draw attention to herself, say something to the girl, or just back away and continue looking for Bellamy, but before she could decide, the dark haired girl looked up from her toast and immediately narrowed her striking green eyes.

"Who are you?" she asked.

"Cl-Clarke," Clarke stammered, wishing she felt and sounded more confident. She hoped this girl didn't think she'd broken in or anything. "I'm-," she started to explain, but the girl cut her off.

"My brother's latest conquest?" she snorted, turning back to her toast. Clarke's eyes widened in surprise at the insinuation.

"I… what? Your brother? Conquest? No, I-," Clarke tried to explain again, but this girl (Bellamy's sister apparently), clearly wasn't in the mood for explanations.

"Don't kid yourself, Clarke," she said flatly. "Bellamy's slept with everyone in this town. I'm doing you a favour by letting you know now." She seemed a little sympathetic, but she'd obviously had this talk a few times.

"You're mistaken," Clarke replied, hoping her face wasn't as red as it felt. "I didn't sleep with your brother."

"Oh." Bellamy's sister said. "Who are you then?"

"She's the new maid," Bellamy cut in, walking into the kitchen then and opening the fridge to pull out the milk. His hair was wet, he'd clearly just showered, and the smell of his aftershave wafted towards her as he walked past. "Clarke, meet my sister Octavia. Octavia, Clarke," he introduced as he poured himself a bowl of cereal.

"The maid?" Octavia repeated, somewhat accusingly. "Bellamy-," she started.

"Don't you have somewhere to be?" Bellamy said through gritted teeth. Octavia checked her watch, then glanced at Clarke, still standing by the bench awkwardly.

"I'll talk to you about this later," she said to Bellamy before stalking out, not another word or glance in the direction of Clarke.

"Alright, I'll give you a tour of the house," Bellamy told her, not bothering to apologise for his sister's less than warm welcome. Seems like the Blake's had that in common.

He showed her around the house, telling her what would be expected of her as they walked.

"Can you cook?" he asked.

"Reasonably," she replied with a shrug.

"We'll see," he said dubiously. "Obviously, cleaning is the main thing. If you can't cook then you'll need to learn. You'll also be expected to answer the door and run errands and do the grocery shopping, that kind of thing. You work from eight until eight, and you can have a break at ten, one and six. Sound reasonable?" Bellamy asked. Clarke nodded. "You can have one day off a week. Any preference for what day?"

"No," Clarke responded.

"Alright we can figure that out later. Any questions?" he finished, looking at her expectantly. They'd stopped back in the kitchen after seeing the rest of the house. She had about a million questions, but most of them were about Bellamy himself and she got the vibe he wasn't about to tell her his whole life story, no matter how interested she was to hear it.

"What should I wear?" she asked instead.

"Right, you have no clothes," he pulled out his wallet and handed her some cash. "Buy your work clothes with this. Something black and respectable. You can borrow some of Octavia's clothes for today and when you're not working until the police track down John Murphy."

"She won't mind?" Clarke queried dubiously.

"She'll get over it. Now, I have to go and meet someone. You can make yourself at home but please don't go into my study or bedroom. Those are off limits unless you're cleaning, obviously," he said sternly. Clarke nodded in understanding and Bellamy nodded back before brushing past her and leaving her alone.

Clarke decided to make herself some breakfast before walking to the shops to find something to wear for work. She kept her own clothes on, not ready to go rifling through Octavia's wardrobe just yet. From what she could tell when Bellamy showed her his sister's room, Octavia had a lot of clothes and probably wouldn't miss a few but Clarke wasn't willing to risk it. It seemed like the girl already disapproved of her.

Everything looked different in daylight, but she walked in the direction of where she thought they'd come from last night, hoping maybe she could run into someone who could direct her to where the main shopping area of town was. The Blake house was kind of out of town, surrounded by farm land, and it took her half an hour just to get to the edge of town. She passed a tractor dealership and some big warehouses, and as she passed the mechanics, someone called out to her.

"Hey, Clarke!" Clarke spun around to see Raven grinning at her from behind the wheel of a car.

"Oh, hey," Clarke replied with a small wave.

"I'm just about to take this baby for a spin, figure out what's wrong with it. You need a lift somewhere?" Raven offered.

"That would be great," Clarke accepted gratefully and quickly slipped into the passenger seat. "I need to go to the shops."

"Sure. Where's you car?" Raven asked as she pulled out onto the road.

"Long story short, it got stolen," Clarke sighed.

"Shit! Did you call the cops?" Raven asked.

"Yeah, they're looking into it," Clarke replied.

"You need somewhere to stay? I have a spare room," Raven offered.

"No, that's okay… I actually… well, someone kind of saved me last night and offered me a job and somewhere to live," Clarke confessed. She wasn't sure why, but it felt like the whole thing should be kept a secret.

"No way! So you'll be sticking around for a while then?" Raven continued.

"Yeah I guess so," Clarke smiled.

"So who is it? What's the job?" Raven questioned.

"Um, Bellamy Blake's maid," Clarke said, glancing at Raven for her reaction. She trusted this woman, and if she knew Bellamy Clarke was willing to trust her opinion on the guy. Raven raised her eyebrows.

"Bellamy Blake?"

"Yeah. Do you know him?"

" _Everyone_ knows him," Raven laughed knowingly.

"What's he like?" Clarke asked, a little apprehensively.

"He's a good guy. Helps people out when he can," Raven nodded.

"Have you slept with him?" Clarke blurted out. She hadn't meant to be so blunt but she couldn't seem to stop herself. Raven didn't seem offended, to Clarke's relief, and actually laughed.

"Not one to beat around the bush, huh?" she chuckled.

"Sorry, it's just Octavia said he had slept with everyone in town… and then you said _everyone_ knows him so I just assumed…" she trailed off, embarrassed.

"Oh, I have slept with him," Raven confirmed. "Octavia's kind of exaggerating though. I think he's professional enough not to try anything with you, if that's what you're worried about," Raven assured her.

"Oh no," Clarke said, surprised. She hadn't even considered the idea. "I was just…" she didn't even know why she was asking. It was probably unprofessional of _her_ to be asking about her new boss's sex life. "…wondering." She finished lamely. Raven raised an eyebrow at her but said nothing. A minute later she pulled up on the main street.

"Alright, kid, I'll catch you later," she said as Clarke got out of the car. "Call me if you need a ride."

"I don't have your number. Or a phone," Clarke remembered.

"Well, walk back to the shop and I can give you a lift from there," Raven amended.

"Okay, thanks," Clarke said, slamming the car door behind her.


	3. Spotless

**Okay I have to warn you, I'm not entirely sure where this story is going. I have a vague idea but I'm open to suggestions ha. If not, I guess we'll all be surprised to see where it goes!**

* * *

It wasn't too hard to choose some black clothes for work and after purchasing two pairs of black pants and three black button down shirts she still had some change from the money Bellamy had given her. She also bought some cheap underwear. She might consider wearing Octavia's clothes but there was no way she was sharing underwear with the girl. She pocketed the small amount of change to give back to Bellamy later before heading back in the direction of Raven's work.

She walked into the building, which was really just like a big shed with a small office at the front. She couldn't see Raven anywhere so she ducked her head into the office where a blonde guy was rubbing his head in frustration.

"Can I help you?" he asked, looking up when the door opened.

"I'm looking for Raven," Clarke told him. He nodded and threw his pen on the desk, standing up and pushing past her through the door.

"Reyes!" he yelled into the shop.

"What?" Raven's voice echoed through the building.

"There's someone here to see you," the guy yelled back. Raven slid out from under a car.

"Oh, hey Clarke," she grinned. She got up and walked over to them. "I gotta take Clarke home, I'll be back in a bit," she told the guy, already dragging Clarke away.

"You can't just leave whenever you want! I'm your boss I can dock your pay," he yelled after her.

"Sure, Wick," she called back without turning around. She got into her truck and Clarke followed her lead.

"Are you sure this is okay? I don't want your boss to dock your pay," Clarke said in concern.

"It's fine, he won't," Raven winked. "He has a crush on me." Clarke glanced out the back window to see Wick shaking his head as he went back into the office.

"He's kinda hot, you should go for it," Clarke advised with a smirk.

"Are you kidding?" Raven snorted. "I can't sleep with my boss. What would people think?"

"You don't really seem like the kind of person who cares what people think," Clarke pointed out.

"I don't, really. But this is a small town and I don't need to be the topic of idle gossip. A lot of people here are still old fashioned. Hell, some people here don't think women should have sex with anyone but their husband, let alone their boss," Raven scowled.

"But if you were dating…"

"You seriously don't get it," Raven shook her head. "But it's fine because Wick and I do. He knows it's never going to happen, I know it's never going to happen. It's better this way."

"Okay," Clarke nodded. "Sorry."

"Don't worry about it," Raven grinned. "Not your fault people here are gossip hungry bitches."

Raven dropped Clarke at the front of the Blake house and headed back to work, while Clarke opened the heavy front door and went to find Bellamy to give him the remainder of his money and see if the clothes she bought were acceptable.

She searched what seemed like the whole house before she heard voices coming from Octavia's room.

"You can't just keep handing money out to anyone who asks for it!" Octavia was saying.

"That's why I offered her a job instead," Bellamy replied.

"There's a reason we fired the last maid, remember?" Octavia reminded him. She was clearly angry with her brother and Clarke didn't like that she was the cause of the animosity between them.

"I don't see you offering to cook and clean," Bellamy scoffed. Clarke decided she should probably stop eavesdropping and knocked on Octavia's slightly ajar bedroom door.

"Clarke," Bellamy said as both siblings turned to face her.

"I had some change from buying my work clothes," Clarke said, holding out the money as she walked over to him.

"You can keep it," Bellamy told her. Octavia made a dramatic sound of exasperation and stormed from the room. "Don't worry about her. She's just upset because she didn't get the job she interviewed for today."

"Oh, that's disappointing for her," Clarke sympathised. Bellamy nodded in agreement.

"I should go after her," Bellamy said and gave Clarke a quick nod before heading out. "If you're looking for something to do for the afternoon, the orchards are really nice this time of day. But don't pick anything, we start tomorrow," Bellamy told her.

"Orchards?" Clarke wondered quizzically.

"Yeah. The peaches," Bellamy frowned at her. Clarke stared at him confused.

"You don't know what I do," Bellamy realised.

"You never told me," Clarke pointed out.

"I suppose I didn't," Bellamy agreed. "I own a peach farm."

"You're a farmer?" Clarke asked in surprise. "Is there a lot of money in peaches?" Bellamy raised an eyebrow at her and she wondered if she was being too intrusive.

"There can be," he finally replied. "Some of our fortune is family money."

"And where is this family now?" Clarke pressed. Bellamy actually gave her a half smile and shook his head slightly.

"Don't push your luck," he said before leaving the room. Clarke smiled to herself before leaving Octavia's room and taking Bellamy's advice and taking a walk through the peach trees.

* * *

She barely slept that night, too nervous about her first day of work the next day. Luckily there was an alarm clock in the room as she had no phone to wake her up in the morning.

At 7am she got up and showered and made herself some breakfast before standing awkwardly in the kitchen, waiting for Bellamy and Octavia to come down for breakfast.

Octavia gave her a look of distaste when she walked into the kitchen.

"Coffee?" Clarke offered, ignoring the look Octavia gave her.

"Black, two sugars," Octavia commanded. "I'll also have scrambled eggs on toast. I'll wait in the dining room." Clarke nodded as Octavia flounced out of the room. Clarke's hands shook as she made Octavia's breakfast and coffee. She knew how to make coffee, and she had a vague idea of how to make scrambled eggs, but she'd never actually _done it_ before.

She brought the meal nervously to Octavia who was flicking through facebook on her phone at one end of the unnecessarily large dining table. Or maybe it was necessary. Maybe the Blake's often had large dinner parties.

"Thanks," Octavia muttered as Clarke placed her breakfast in front of her.

"When will Bellamy be down?" Clarke asked Octavia.

"He's already out picking," Octavia told her.

"Oh," Clarke nodded. She hadn't realised he picked the fruit himself, or that he started so early.

"Also, it's customary for the help to call their employers by their last name," Octavia informed her as she took as sip of her coffee. She didn't spit it out, so that was a good sign.

"Sorry?"

"You should call him Mr. Blake. And you should call me Miss Blake," Octavia elaborated, pursing her lips.

"Bellamy didn't say…" Clarke started to protest.

"Look, you're obviously not used to taking orders, I get that. But this is your job now. And since you've obviously never been a maid before, you're going to have to learn quickly. Listen to what I say. My brother isn't your only boss," Octavia said authoritatively.

"Right, sorry," Clarke nodded. She wasn't sure what she'd done to offend Octavia so greatly, but she figured it was better to just do what the girl told her rather than risk getting thrown out. "How are the eggs, Miss Blake?" Maybe she said the words _Miss Blake_ a little too acidly, and she probably deserved the glare Octavia shot her.

"Way too sloppy. You'll have to practise."

* * *

Cleaning was hard, as Clarke soon discovered. She and her mom had had a maid too, so she never really had to do any cleaning before. And it wasn't the kind of cleaning she used to do on her own room (her mom made her do her own room to promote work ethic), where she just put away her clothes and made her bed. No, the Blake's expected a spotless house, which included dusting every surface, vacuuming and mopping floors, washing towels and sheets and clothes and scrubbing the kitchen and bathroom until they shone.

Octavia sat in the living room on her laptop while Clarke vacuumed under her feet. Clarke half expected her to make comments about how she was doing it wrong, but she was surprisingly quiet.

It obviously hadn't been too long since they fired their last maid though, maybe a few weeks, as the house wasn't particularly dirty, but it still took her hours.

Clarke left Bellamy's bedroom and study until last. She felt weird going in there since he'd told her not to unless she was cleaning. And she _was_ cleaning, but somehow it still felt off limits when he wasn't there.

She was making his bed when he walked into the room, sweaty from working in the sun all day, shirt already halfway over his head, revealing a nicely toned stomach and abs.

"Bellamy!" Clarke said, startled, stumbling back and nearly falling backwards onto the bed. "I mean, Mr. Blake," she corrected herself, blushing profusely. Bellamy quickly pulled his shirt back down and Clarke averted her eyes, feeling a little guilty for staring.

"Clarke," he said, equally surprised to find her there. "You don't have to call me that."

"Octavia… I mean, Miss Blake, said-," Clarke started to explain.

"Ignore her. What are you doing in here?" Bellamy questioned.

"Cleaning?"

"Right. Do the bedrooms first next time," Bellamy commanded.

"Okay, I'm sorry," Clarke apologised, feeling like a total idiot once again.

"It's fine, I know you don't have any experience." Clarke nodded and went to leave the room. "By the way, I have some good news. I got a call from Miller today, they found your car and they've got Murphy locked up," Bellamy said, stopping her.

"Oh, great," Clarke smiled, relieved.

"I'll take you to pick up your car."

"Thanks," Clarke accepted gratefully. Bellamy stared at her for a moment. "Um, but first I need to shower," he said pointedly, nodding towards the door."

"Oh my god, I'm sorry," Clarke gushed, practically fleeing from the room, her face the colour of a tomato. As she shut the door behind her, she thought she heard Bellamy laughing at her. Well, at least if he was amused by her incompetence he wouldn't fire her.

* * *

After his shower, Bellamy led her to his car and they got in wordlessly as they drove towards the police station. The silence made Clarke feel awkward and she searched for anything to say to fill it.

"You know, maybe I shouldn't stay. Now that they've found my car. Octavia doesn't seem to like me, and I don't want to drive a wedge between you two. I'm sure you could find a much more qualified maid," she babbled.

"I'm sure I could," Bellamy agreed. Clarke tried to hide the disappointment she felt. She hadn't thought he'd be so eager to get rid of her. She shouldn't have been surprised though, he was probably relieved he didn't have to put up with her inability to do anything right. "But it would make my life much easier if you'd stay."

"But I'm a terrible maid," Clarke reminded him.

"It's your first day, Clarke. You'll get better," he glanced at her dubious expression. "You can go if you want. I won't stop you. But don't go if you don't want to." Clarke nodded and they fell back into silence.

"This is a nice car," Clarke mused.

"It is a nice car," Bellamy agreed. "I'm selling it."

"Oh." She opened her mouth to say something else, but Bellamy cut her off.

"Silence make you uncomfortable?" he asked, a smirk playing across his lips.

"No," Clarke denied. "Maybe a little," she admitted.

"Maybe you could tell me what you're doing here in Ark Hill," Bellamy suggested. Clarke immediately fell silent. "How do I know you're not on the run from the law?"

"You obviously don't think I am or you wouldn't have hired me," Clarke pointed out.

"Good point," he chuckled. Clarke sighed and decided she probably owed him some kind of explanation for all he'd done for her.

"I ran away. My car ran out of gas, Raven Reyes picked me up and brought me here," Clark shrugged. "That's it basically."

"You ran away?" Bellamy raised an eyebrow at her. "I thought that was something only ten year olds did."

"Shut up," Clarke scowled while Bellamy smiled to himself.

They pulled up to the police station and Officer Miller led them to Clarke's car.

"Murphy's kind of an idiot. He should've dumped the car but he obviously thought it was too nice and he held onto it. We went round there today. Seems like all your stuff is there, but they spend all the cash. Sorry about that," Officer Miller told her.

"Murphy is kind of an idiot," Bellamy agreed. "He's had a hard life though."

"You've tried to help him before, Blake," Miller shook his head. "He doesn't want to change. Don't make excuses for him."

"He's only twenty one. He's got time to grow up," Bellamy insisted. Miller just sighed and shook his head before heading back inside the station.

"So, are you staying?" Bellamy asked Clarke, once Miller was gone. Clarke nodded with a small smile. "Good. What are you making for dinner?"


	4. Echoes

Clarke soon got used to the routine of cleaning and cooking and soon she found herself actually enjoying it. Somehow cleaning up after other people wasn't as bad as cleaning up after yourself, and if there was anything she couldn't figure out how to clean, or any stains she couldn't get out, she would just google how to do it.

The cooking side of things was a little harder. She'd lived at home her whole life, apart from her brief stints of running away and staying at Wells's house, and someone had always cooked for her. She managed to cook spaghetti the first night, and Bellamy and Octavia ate it, so it couldn't have been too bad. The only thing was she didn't really know how to make anything else.

After a week of spaghetti bolognaise (and one night of trying to make a risotto), she came home after spending the afternoon with Raven on her day off to find a hard rectangle in shiny wrapping paper lying on her bed. She picked up the note lying on top of it

 _I bought you a present. Don't be offended._

Clarke eyed the gift suspiciously before picking it up and unwrapping it. "Oh, a cookbook," she stared at the book glumly. Apparently her cooking was not up to scratch. She wasn't really offended, she was a little sick of spaghetti herself. She just didn't really have faith in her cooking abilities to try anything different. However the title of this book was called _Easy Meals for Beginners_ so she thought she might be able to handle it. She sat down on her bed and flicked through the book, trying to find the easiest thing to start off with. She decided on a stir fry for tonight, it didn't look too complicated. She also picked out a couple of other recipes that looked relatively simple for the next few nights.

She quickly wrote a list of the things she needed and went to find Bellamy to ask for money for the groceries. She didn't find him, but she did find Octavia in her room.

"Miss Blake?" Clarke said through gritted teeth. She hated calling Octavia that, when they were the same age. She knocked on the half open door and Octavia looked up.

"Yeah?" Octavia replied.

"I'm going to do the grocery shopping, could I have some money?" Clarke asked as politely as she could. Octavia narrowed her eyes. Clarke bit back the urge to ask her what was wrong now. Surely she couldn't have a problem with Clarke doing her job?

"Isn't it your day off?" Octavia asked her.

"Yeah, but I'm not doing anything right now, I thought I'd get it out of the way," Clarke shrugged.

"Fine. I'm coming with you," Octavia said, getting off her bed and putting her shoes on. Clarke rolled her eyes and headed out to her car, leaving Octavia to follow.

Octavia didn't speak to her the entire way to the supermarket, preferring to keep her eyes on her phone the whole time. Clarke didn't bother trying to make awkward conversation.

Clarke grabbed a shopping cart and wandered through the aisles, Octavia trailing after her, questioning her every time she put something into the basket.

"What do we need that for?" Octavia asked when Clarke put a red capsicum into the trolley.

"It's for dinner," Clarke said flatly.

"Why do we need eggs?" Octavia said as if this was an interrogation, and Clarke began to wonder if it wasn't.

"You eat eggs everyday for breakfast," Clarke said, clenching her fists. Octavia was really starting to get her nerves with the constant questions.

She was almost done when a girl about their age walked up to them.

"Octavia," she smiled. "Hey! I haven't seen you in ages."

"I've been busy," Octavia replied tersely.

"Who's this?" the girl asked.

"The new maid, Clarke. This is Maya," Octavia gestured to the new acquaintance. "Maya is a maid too. She works for Cage Wallace." The name meant nothing to Clarke but she nodded anyway.

"Why are you here, Octavia? It's not normal for you to accompany your maid to the grocery store. Don't you trust her?" Maya joked.

"Of course I trust her. Why wouldn't I?" Octavia bit defensively.

"I was just joking," Maya said apologetically. "What happened to Echo anyway?"

"It didn't work out. We have to go now," Octavia said and began walking towards the checkout. Clarke smiled at Maya apologetically before hurrying after Octavia.

"You don't trust me!" she accused.

"Of course I don't," Octavia snorted. "I don't know anything about you."

"It's not like you've bothered to find out," Clarke pointed out, pulling things out of the trolley and placing them on the conveyer. Octavia stayed silent, but she starting helping with the groceries. "Who's Echo anyway?" Clarke asked, after realising Octavia wasn't going to continue the previous conversation.

"None of your business!" Octavia snapped.

* * *

By her own powers of deduction, Clarke figured Echo was probably the previous maid. What she didn't understand was why Octavia was being so weird about it. Was it possible that Echo and Octavia had been a couple and Echo had broken Octavia's heart? It was plausible, and it would explain why a) she hated Clarke's presence so much and b) why she was so reluctant to talk about the previous maid.

Clarke made the decision to ask Bellamy about it. She knew it probably wasn't any of her business, but her curiosity was too strong to let it be. Plus, it would be nice to know the reason behind Octavia's bad attitude (if Echo did in fact have something to do with it).

She was going to ask him before she served dinner, but he didn't come home until well after she was in bed, though she was still awake. She was a little disappointed he wasn't there to try her stir-fry, but there were no complaints from Octavia so she figured it must have been okay. She realised she hadn't seen him all day and she added that to the list of questions to ask him.

Monday morning came and he went out picking in the morning, and locked himself in his study when he got back at two o'clock. Clarke wondered if he was even eating. When he didn't come out of his study for dinner she decided she would bring his meal to him in his study, though Octavia told her not to disturb him.

She knocked on the door hesitantly, holding the plate with her other hand.

"What is it?" Bellamy called gruffly.

"I brought food," Clarke called back.

"Okay, bring it in," Bellamy replied. Clarke pushed open the door and carried the plate to his desk. "Thanks," he said without looking up from his computer. She was surprised to find he was wearing glasses. She was distracted from her mission for a moment, thinking about how good he looked in them.

"Was there something else?" Bellamy asked, looking up finally. Clarke hesitated, wondering how to broach the subject.

"You didn't come home for dinner yesterday. I was just wondering where you were," Clarke said.

"I was out of town," he replied vaguely, looking at her over the tops of his glasses.

"Okay," Clarke nodded. It wasn't really an answer, but she sensed he wasn't going to tell her more. "One more thing… who's Echo?" Bellamy took his glasses off then and looked at Clarke seriously.

"Where'd you hear that name?" he asked.

"This girl at the grocery store… Maya…" Clarke started.

"Clarke," Bellamy cut her off, his mouth forming into a thin line. "I've obviously given you the impression that I'm willing to discuss personal matters with you. That is not the case. You are an employee here, and I expect you to act as one. That means doing your job and not prying into matters that don't concern you."

"Right," Clarke said flatly. "Sorry."

Bellamy nodded and put his glasses back on, turning back to the computer.

Clarke turned quickly and slipped out of the room, closing the door firmly behind her. She felt like he'd punched her in the stomach and her throat felt constricted, like she was about to cry. She wouldn't though, she didn't have a good reason to.

It was silly really. She _knew_ she was just their employee, but she kind of thought of Bellamy as a kind of friend, and she thought maybe he felt the same. But obviously she was just projecting her feelings onto him. She'd have to be more careful, lest she develop some kind of stupid crush on him. She was glad he'd given her this wake up call before that had happened, and she knew it was bound to. She could feel herself developing feelings for him the moment she got into his car.

But she vowed it would be strictly professional from now on. She would clean his house and cook his food and stay out of his way as much as possible, and more than anything she would stay out of his business and forget about this Echo woman. She doubted Bellamy would notice if he barely saw her. It would probably make Octavia happier too.

Clarke took a deep breath and headed back downstairs to clean up after Octavia.

"Maya texted me," Octavia said as Clarke took her empty plate. "She wants your number."

"Why?" Clarke asked wonderingly.

"I think she wants to be friends. Maids sticking together or some crap. So what's you number?" Octavia asked.

"I don't have a phone," Clarke told her. Though most of her stuff had been returned with her car, her phone wasn't one of those things. Octavia looked at her like she was an alien.

"I'll tell her you'll drop round," she sighed, tapping on her phone as she left the room. Clarke stared after her, the wheels in her head turning. _Maids sticking together,_ Octavia's words echoed in her head. Clarke wondered if Maya had been friends with Echo, and suddenly her earlier resolution to mind her own business was totally forgotten.

* * *

 **Hey if you like this story it would mean a lot to me if you could leave a comment and let me know!**


	5. Crush

It was only three days later when Bellamy sought her out after dinner. She was washing the dishes when he came into the kitchen.

"Clarke," he said, startling her. She dropped the frying pan into the sink and turned to him. He was leaning against the kitchen bench, like he was trying to look relaxed, but she'd never seen him look so uncomfortable.

"Yes, Mr. Blake?" she said politely.

"I told you, you don't have to call me that," Bellamy reminded her.

"Right, but like you said, I'm your employee," she said. She didn't mean to sound so impudent but it just came out. Bellamy sighed and rubbed his head.

"That's actually why I wanted to talk to you," he said, standing up straight and taking a step towards her. "I wanted to apologise. I think I might have been a little harsh the other day, so I'm sorry. It's only natural that you would want to know about the people you work for," he said sincerely.

"Thanks," Clarke nodded.

"Echo was our previous maid," Bellamy told her. Clarke nodded again and Bellamy gave her an awkward smile.

"I have to get back to the dishes," Clarke hinted.

"Of course. I just wanted to ask you to do something for me," Bellamy said. "Do you think you could prepare some kind of morning tea for myself and the workers and bring it out to us at about eleven tomorrow?"

"Sure," Clarke nodded. "How many people?"

"Five," Bellamy told her.

"Five? That's it?" Clarke said incredulously. She had expected Bellamy to have a whole hoard of pickers working for him.

"Just five," he confirmed.

"Okay," Clarke agreed and Bellamy awkwardly patted her shoulder before leaving the room. Clarke stared after him wonderingly. She was pleased that he'd apologised, but she had already figured out as much about Echo, and just because Bellamy had decided to be nice to her again didn't mean she was going to give up trying to find out why the Blakes didn't want to talk about Echo. Plus, it had taken him three days to apologise and in her mind that was far too long. And like he said, it was only natural to want to know about the people she worked for.

* * *

The following day, Clarke did as Bellamy asked and prepared a kind of picnic for him and his workers, bringing it out to him at eleven o'clock as requested. One of the guys hooted in excitement when he spotted her walking through the trees towards them. He jumped down from the metal stand he had been standing on and emptied his bag into a crate on the back of a trailer.

"Jasper, did I say you could stop?" Bellamy reprimanded the excited boy.

"But the food's here," Jasper pointed at Clarke. Bellamy sighed and walked over to empty his own bag.

"Okay, everyone, break time!" he shouted and the other three workers stopped what they were doing and removed their bags, pulling the heavy material over their heads and walking over to Clarke.

"This is Clarke, our new maid," Bellamy introduced as Clarke put down the cooler she was carrying and began handing out the food. He was dirty and sweaty and somehow he looked incredibly hot.

"These are my new workers, Jasper, Monty, Harper and Fox," Bellamy gestured to the four of them. They all looked to be about her age and she wondered why Bellamy had four teenagers working for him when he could probably afford more experienced workers. Then she realised he'd done exactly the same with her.

"Hey Clarke, you should stay and eat with us," Monty smiled.

"Oh, I can't. I already had my break and I need to finish cleaning the house," Clarke declined.

"Bellamy will let you stay, won't you Bellamy?" Fox grinned at her boss.

"Of course," Bellamy smiled. "Pull up a step ladder." Clarke did as she was bid, and the others followed, Bellamy ended up sitting on the cooler.

"Where are you from, Clarke?" Jasper asked her. Clarke hesitated, glancing at Bellamy before she replied. She wasn't sure why she was reluctant to let him know anything about her. He'd made it clear he wasn't going to try and make her go back. But he was watching her closely now, to see if she'd reply.

"Sacramento," she finally answered.

"So what are you doing here?" Harper asked.

"Just… wanted to get away." Her home town was about all she was willing to share at this point in time. "Are you guys all from Ark Hill?" Clarke asked, averting the attention away from herself.

"Yep! Monty and I live over there," Jasper pointed through the trees. "We rent that place off Bellamy."

"I'm from here but I'm going to college in LA in the fall," Harper said.

"And I am yet to finish high school," Fox sighed.

"So this is just a summer job, I guess," Clarke mused. The other four nodded.

"Have you tasted one of the peaches yet?" Monty asked. Clarke shook her head and Bellamy stood up and walked over to a small bin half full of peaches.

"Here, take one," he held out the bin and Clarke pulled one out.

"What's wrong with them?" she asked suspiciously. If they were in a bin surely they weren't good.

"Split stone. Can't sell them but they're perfectly good," Bellamy assured her. "Well, they're a bit under ripe, but I like them like that."

Clarke bit into the peach, it was a little crunchy and tart, but it was pretty nice.

"Well?" Bellamy said expectantly.

"It's good," she nodded. Bellamy seemed weirdly pleased at her response, and she realised the other four had all been staring at her, watching her eat the peach. "I should get back to work," she said hurriedly, standing up.

"Bye, Clarke!" Jasper called after her as she walked away.

"Nice to meet you!" Harper yelled. Clarke didn't look back.

* * *

Bringing the workers their morning tea became a regular occurrence after that, though Clarke didn't stay to eat with them anymore.

She didn't get to go and see Maya until Sunday, her day off. Octavia had written the Cage Wallace's address on a post it note and stuck it on her door a few days earlier. Clarke found the address easily, Cage lived in an enormous mansion on the outskirts of town, twice as big as the Blake's home. The estate was so fancy they had an intercom at the front gate. To Clarke's relief, Maya was the one who answered the intercom.

"Maya?" she said once she'd heard Maya's voice. "It's Clarke Griffin. I came to see you."

"Oh, great! Come on in!" Maya sounded pleased and Clarke felt a little guilty at her real reason for coming; grilling Maya on Echo. She parked her car in front of the house (if it could even be called that – it was much grander than a house) and walked up the front steps, Maya opening the front door before she had a chance to ring the bell.

"Come in! I'll take my break a little early. Hopefully Mr. Wallace won't mind," Maya smiled and led Clarke into the kitchen. "Would you like a tea or coffee?"

"Coffee would be great," Clarke accepted.

"Sorry if it was weird, me asking Octavia for your number," Maya apologised, pulling mugs out of a cupboard as Clarke sat on a barstool at the kitchen bench. "But it's nice to talk to someone else who's a maid, you know. Since Echo left like a month ago I haven't had really anyone to talk to."

"Oh it's fine," Clarke smiled, delighted that Maya had brought up the topic of Echo without any prompting. "Were you and Echo close?"

"Reasonably I suppose. I get the feeling she wasn't really close to anyone. She was only here a few months," Maya shrugged. "Milk and sugar?" Clarke nodded.

"She wasn't even close to Octavia? Or Bellamy?" Clarke prodded.

"Why do you ask?" Maya questioned, handing Clarke her coffee.

"I was just wondering why she left," Clarke said slowly. "I thought maybe… never mind," she trailed off. She didn't want Maya to think she was just gossiping. Maya raised an eyebrow.

"Well… I don't like to gossip, and Echo never really opened up about her personal life… but I got the feeling there may have been something going on between her and Bellamy," Maya leaned in close and lowered her voice and she spoke.

"Bellamy?" Clarke said in surprise. Her stomach twisted at the thought. She had been sure it was Octavia. Or maybe she had just hoped.

"Are you surprised?" Maya laughed. "He has had a thing with almost everyone in town."

"Including you?" Clarke wondered allowed.

"God no!" Maya choked on her coffee. "Besides the fact that I have a bit of a crush on someone else, I don't think Bellamy would ever make a move on someone our age. The same age as his sister you know." Clarke couldn't help but feel an inexplicable wave of disappointment.

"How old was Echo then?" Clarke asked.

"About twenty-five I think," Maya guessed. Clarke nodded.

"And how old is Bellamy?" she had been wondering for a while now.

"Twenty eight or twenty nine? He's about ten years older than us I believe," Maya informed her.

"And who do you have a crush on?" Clarke smirked. She figured she should probably stop the questions about Echo and Bellamy now, lest she seem too interested. Maya turned bright red.

"You caught that then?" she spluttered. Clarke laughed at Maya's embarrassment. "His name is Jasper Jordan. We went to school together, but he always had a crush on Octavia," Maya sighed.

"Oh I know him," Clarke nodded. "He's working for Bellamy. Well, good luck with that," she said genuinely.

"Thanks," Maya smiled.

"Oh hey, I have a favour to ask. Do you think you could teach me how to cook?"

"Sure," Maya laughed.

* * *

Clarke was dusting in the living room the following day when she heard the unfamiliar sound of the doorbell. She immediately dropped what she was doing and when to the door to answer it. A hulking figure of a man, with a shaved head and tattoos on his bare arms stood there.

"Can I help you?" Clarke asked him.

"Yes, my name's Lincoln Abraham, I'm here to see Bellamy Blake," he said gruffly.

"Is he expecting you?"

"No, actually," Lincoln said, but he didn't elaborate as to why he was there.

"Alright, let me just go and get him," Clarke eyed Lincoln dubiously. "Wait here." Lincoln nodded and Clarke hurried out to the orchard to find Bellamy. He didn't notice her until she was standing right next to him, saying his name.

"Clarke? Is it eleven already?" he asked, wiping the sweat from his brow. It was only nine o'clock but it was obviously going to be a scorcher.

"No, there's someone at the door to see you. A Lincoln Abraham," Clarke informed him.

"What does he want?" Bellamy asked her.

"I have no idea," Clarke shook her head. Bellamy sighed before emptying the peaches he had picked into the crate and pulling the bag off, then followed Clarke inside.

"What can I do for you?" Bellamy asked when confronted with Lincoln at the front door. He glanced at Clarke and she took that as her cue to leave. She went back to dusting in the living room as Bellamy took Lincoln upstairs, presumably to his study. A few minutes later she heard them return downstairs.

"I'll see you tomorrow. Clarke will show you out," Bellamy was saying and Clarke quickly made an appearance. Octavia came downstairs just as Clarke was showing Lincoln to the door.

"Good morning," Bellamy greeted her once Lincoln was out of sight.

"Who was that?" Octavia asked, intrigued. Bellamy raised an eyebrow.

"He works for us now. And he's ten years older than you so stay away from him," Bellamy warned. Octavia rolled her eyes.

"Why are you hiring more people?" Octavia scolded him. "What job have you given him?"

"He's down on his luck. He's going to do the stuff Clarke can't. Gardening. Fixing stuff, cleaning the pool." Bellamy told her. "He'll help with the picking when there's nothing else to do. He'll be living here, but he'd already paid for a night at a motel so he's moving in tomorrow."

"He's living here?" Octavia perked up.

"I regret this decision already," Bellamy frowned. " _Stay away from him,_ " he stressed before heading back out to keep working, shooting Octavia a warning look over his shoulder. Octavia grinned mischievously.

"Why do I get the feeling you're going to ignore your brother's request?" Clarke said worriedly. Octavia just grinned wider.


	6. Rumours

Clarke helped Lincoln move in the next day, while Bellamy was out picking and Octavia was still in bed (though it was almost eleven). Lincoln didn't have very much stuff, and Clarke wondered if he was also on the run, like she was, but she didn't want to pry. Well, she did want to pry, but she thought she'd let him settle in a bit first.

"Did Bellamy happen to say what he would like done first?" Lincoln asked Clarke once they'd brought all his stuff inside.

"No, he didn't" Clarke replied.

"The pool," came Octavia's voice from the top of the stairs as she walked down, already wearing her bikini. "He wants the pool cleaned first," she smiled at Lincoln. "I'll help you." Clarke rolled her eyes but didn't bother trying to intervene. Octavia was a big girl, she could take care of herself. And honestly she thought Bellamy was being a little overprotective anyway. Lincoln seemed like a nice guy, and Bellamy obviously trusted him enough to hire him and let him live in his home, so Clarke didn't see why Octavia chasing after him was such a big deal.

Clarke went back to cleaning, and maybe it wasn't entirely a coincidence that she'd decided to wash the windows by the pool area, and maybe she was subconsciously keeping an eye on Octavia for Bellamy. Lincoln was shirtless, despite the fact that he didn't actually need to get in the pool to clean it.

Clarke couldn't hear what they were saying, but it was obvious from their body language that they were flirting. Lincoln wasn't really paying attention to the pool at all, and Octavia kept twirling a strand of hair around her finger. Clarke rolled her eyes and decided to leave them to it.

Twenty minutes later, Octavia was back inside, leaving Lincoln to finish cleaning the pool.

"I half expected to find you hooking up with him in the pool house," Clarke smirked as Octavia passed her.

"I'm not going to let him have it that easy," Octavia snorted. "Can you make me breakfast now, please?"

* * *

As it turned out, Maya was a very good cooking teacher, and Clarke was eager to try out the chicken pie she had taught her to make. She was tossing up whether to go with chicken thigh or breast (Maya said either was fine for a pie) when she heard someone say Bellamy's name, catching her attention. She glanced over at the two middle aged women before turning away again, pretending to be still mulling over chicken while she eavesdropped.

"Not only that, he's also stopped donating to the church _and_ the high school," one woman said disapprovingly.

"No!" the other woman gasped. "Doesn't he care about the children?"

"Forget about the children, he clearly doesn't care about his soul either. That man is going to hell," the first woman muttered darkly.

"For not donating to the church? Don't be dramatic, Jeannie," the second woman laughed.

"That, and the fact that he's living in sin with that new little whore of his," Jeannie hissed.

"Gosh, Jeannie! What are you talking about?" the second woman was clearly trying to appear shocked at Jeannie's use of language, but it was obvious she was keen to hear some gossip.

"His maid of course. Have you seen her?" Jeannie asked. Clarke risked at glance at the two women to see the second woman shaking her head.

"He's obviously sleeping with her. Not hard to see why, with her blonde curls and perky tits," Jeannie snorted. Clarke could feel herself turning bright red, a mixture of embarrassment and anger.

"Shame on him!" the second woman scolded. "Isn't she only eighteen?"

"Same age as his little sister. Disgusting," Jeannie confirmed. "That doesn't stop her being a harlot though."

"You don't think…" the second woman lowered her voice.

"He's paying her to service his home and his… body," Jeannie said in disgust. Clarke was livid. Not only did these women think she was sleeping with her boss, they thought he was paying her to do it. They thought she was a _literal_ whore. She couldn't stand to listen to any more.

"Excuse me," she said whipping around to face the women.

"Can I help you?" the second woman asked while Jeannie's mouth dropped open, obviously recognising her.

"Yes, actually," Clarke smiled sweetly. "I was wondering if you had any advice about chicken. I'm making chicken pie for my boss, Bellamy Blake."

Clarke watched as the penny dropped and the woman's face went white.

"You're the Blake's new maid?" she gulped.

"Yes. Do you think I should use thigh or breast?" Clarke asked. Jeannie had recovered from her shock and she glared at Clarke coldly.

"I'm sure you've already used both of those things to entice that man," she said, pursing her lips.

"I'm _not_ sleeping with him," Clarke snapped, giving up the pretence.

"Sure, honey," Jeannie scoffed. "Just watch out, you don't know where that man's been," she sniffed. "Come on Karen." Jeannie grabbed Karen's arm and the two of them strode of haughtily, leaving an indignant Clarke standing open mouthed in their wake.

She tried not to let their words get to her. Why should she care what two middle aged women with nothing better to do than gossip thought about her? She bought her ingredients for the chicken pie and headed home, unable to stop thinking about it.

"Is everything alright?" Bellamy asked her when she served dinner.

"Everything's fine," Clarke assured him.

"Are you sure? You've been really quiet. Is something troubling you?" he looked up her in concern.

"It's fine, I just… someone was saying stuff about me today," Clarke admitted. "Stuff that wasn't that nice." Bellamy immediately turned to Octavia.

"Octavia," he said in a warning tone.

"It wasn't me! God," Octavia huffed.

"It wasn't her," Clarke agreed hastily.

"Oh. Who was it? What did they say?" Bellamy pressed.

"Just these two women and the grocery store," Clarke shrugged. "They said…" she trailed off turning red as she thought about their words. She definitely could not repeat it to Bellamy. "It doesn't matter what they said," she shook her head and made to leave the dining room.

"Why don't you go out to the pub and have a drink, let off some steam? Have you got any other friends in town?" Bellamy asked.

"There's Raven and Maya… but I'm only eighteen. I can't buy alcohol," Clarke reminded him.

"Shit, I forgot," Bellamy said, the unmistakable tinge of a blush spreading over his face as Octavia gave a snort of laughter. Bellamy shot her a warning look.

"It's okay," Clarke replied, glancing between the siblings in confusion.

"Go anyway. I'm sure Raven will buy you drinks," Bellamy told her. "Call her off the house phone. Have the rest of the night off."

"Thanks," Clarke said, returning his warm smile.

"Can I go too?" Octavia asked, interrupting the moment Clarke thought they were having.

"Absolutely not."

"I hate you."

* * *

Clarke called Raven who was all too eager to go out and get drunk, despite the fact that it was a Wednesday. Raven picked Clarke up in her truck and drove her to her favourite bar.

"So what's the occasion?" Raven asked, as she slipped Clarke her first drink, sliding into the booth next to her.

"Bellamy made me come out because I was feeling shitty," Clarke told her, sipping on the cocktail Raven had supplied her with.

"What a nice boss. Why are you feeling shitty?"

"These women implied I was a whore," Clarke told her. "Actually, they didn't imply it, they outright said it to my face. Well, not to my face, I was eavesdropping. But still!"

"A whore like, the way you dress or a whore like people pay you for sex?" Raven inquired.

"Like a prostitute. Not that there's anything wrong with being a prostitute! But it isn't nice to hear people say that stuff about you," Clarke sighed.

"No," Raven agreed. "Who were they?"

"These women called Jeannie and Karen," Clarke said.

"Ah, Jeannie Jones and Karen McMillan," Raven nodded in understanding.

"And then I confronted them and told them I wasn't sleeping with him and they just said 'watch out, you don't know where he's been'," Clarke recounted angrily.

"Wait, who? I think I missed something," Raven looked confusion.

"Bellamy. They basically said he hired me to fuck him," Clarke muttered, trying to hide the hurt in her voice. Raven saw right through her.

"Hey, don't listen to those bitches. You know that's not why he hired you," Raven reassured her.

"What if he hears the rumour? That would be so embarrassing!" Clarke moaned, dropping her head into her hands.

"Don't worry, they'll have found something new to gossip about by next week and you'll be old news. Besides, they're just jealous he never fucked them," Raven grinned.

"They have no reason to be jealous of me, because he never fucked me either," Clarke reminded her.

"You sound disappointed," Raven smirked. Clarke turned bright red.

"Raven," she tried to protest, but Raven laughed her off.

"Relax! I get it! I slept with him too, remember?" she patted Clarke's shoulder.

"But Raven, it's not just that…" Clarke tried to explain.

"You like him," Raven guessed. Clarke nodded. "It's okay to have a crush on your boss, Clarke. Hell, I do. But just remember he's a lot older than you. You're the same age as his sister. Don't be too disappointed if it never happens," she said gently.

"I know," Clarke nodded.

"Oh, I almost forgot, this is for you," Raven handed her an old Nokia phone. "I had it lying around. I'm sick of not being able to contact you."

"Thanks," Clarke grinned, taking the phone.

"Now let's get drunk!"

* * *

 **Thanks so much to those who have left reviews, it really does mean a lot to me that you like my work :)**


	7. Alibi

**I finished this last night but I didn't want to post two chapters in one day so here it is today. It's kinda short though sorry.**

* * *

"How was last night?" Bellamy asked Clarke the following morning after she brought him breakfast.

"It was fun," Clarke smiled. "Raven cheered me up."

"Glad to hear it. I wouldn't worry about what people in this town say. They don't have anything better to do than gossip about each other," Bellamy assured her.

"I know that now," Clarke grimaced. "Aren't you picking today?" she asked.

"I'll join the others later. Someone's coming to look at the car this morning," he told her. He began scoffing down his breakfast and Clarke failed at hiding her grin at his terrible table manners.

"What?" he said with his mouth full.

"Nothing," she chuckled, heading back into the kitchen. Lincoln walked in and sat at the counter on a stool.

"Good morning, Lincoln, what can I get you?" she asked.

"I can get my own breakfast, it's all good. I'll just wait until you're done in here," Lincoln told her.

"Lincoln, it's literally my job. Now, what do you want?" she asked.

"Uhh, toast please," he replied. Clarke set to work making his breakfast as Bellamy walked into the kitchen with his empty plate.

"You didn't have to do that, I could have come and got it," Clarke scolded him light heartedly as she took the plate from him. Bellamy just smiled at her.

"Lincoln," Bellamy turned to the man, "I need you to mow the lawns today."

"Not a problem," Lincoln nodded. He glanced up as Octavia waltzed into the kitchen in her pyjamas.

"Kitchen party?" she grinned, brushing against Lincoln as she passed, taking the stool next to him. Lincoln smiled at her and inclined his body towards her, though Clarke wasn't sure if it was conscious or not. Bellamy frowned at the pair. Clarke handed Lincoln his toast and got to work on Octavia's usual scrambled eggs.

"Join me in the dining room?" Octavia said to Lincoln sweetly. Lincoln picked up his plate of toast and followed Octavia out of the kitchen. Clarke glanced at Bellamy to see him frowning, his arms folded tensely over his chest.

"Bellamy…" Clarke started, about to tell him to leave them alone.

"I specifically asked both of them to stay away from each other," he scowled.

"He seems like a good guy," Clarke said.

"It doesn't matter. He's ten years older than her, and I don't trust them together. She'll end up pregnant at eighteen like our mother. She's too young," he said it angrily, but Clarke could tell he was just worried.

"Eighteen isn't that young," Clarke pointed out. "And you can't protect her forever."

"I can try," Bellamy snorted. "Will you watch out for them for me? Tell me if anything untoward happens," Bellamy instructed.

"Alright," Clarke agreed dubiously. She wasn't exactly comfortable relating all Octavia's movements to Bellamy but she didn't feel like she had much choice but to agree.

* * *

"Clarke, I need you to do me a favour," Bellamy interrupted Clarke while she was making Octavia's bed.

"Yes?" she replied absentmindedly, continuing to make the bed.

"I need you to drive me to the accountant since I sold my car yesterday," he said.

"Are both Octavia and Lincoln busy?" Clarke wondered.

"Oh, uhh, I can ask one of them if you want," he said, taken aback.

"No, it's okay, I can take you," she finished with Octavia's bed and turned to him. "Let's go."

"You don't have to stick around, I can get a lift home," Bellamy told her once she'd dropped him off.

"Okay, I'll see you later," she waved and drove back to the Blake house.

As Clarke went back to cleaning she briefly wondered where Octavia was as she hadn't seen the girl all morning. Her bed had been slept in though, so that should put Bellamy's mind at rest. She was vacuuming the lounge when she realised she hadn't cleaned Lincoln's room yet. She remembered her first day when Bellamy had told her to do the bedrooms first, so she turned off the vacuum and headed to Lincoln's room, just as she heard a car pulling up to the front of the house, signifying Bellamy's return.

She knocked on the door and there was no reply so she went inside, closing the door behind her and walking over to the bed, only to find a naked and sleeping Octavia lying in it.

"Oh my god, Octavia!" Clarke practically shrieked and the girl opened her eyes drowsily.

"Clarke? What the fuck are you doing in here?" Octavia barked angrily.

"Cleaning! Where's Lincoln?" Clarke asked.

"He went to get more condoms from my room," Octavia replied, rolling her eyes. "What's it to you?"

"Your brother…" she started, just as she heard voices down the hall.

"Lincoln? Why are you naked?" Bellamy's voice came.

"Shit," Octavia swore under her breath.

"Are those condoms?" Clarke could tell Bellamy was getting angry. "Where's Octavia?"

"Bellamy-," Lincoln started but Bellamy cut him off.

"Have you been screwing my sister?" Bellamy bellowed, the thud of his footsteps coming towards Lincoln's room. "Octavia!"

"Help!" Octavia mouthed at Clarke.

"Fuck," Clarke swore. "Quickly, hide!" she urged Octavia, kicking her shoes off.

"What are you doing?" Octavia stared as Clarke pulled off her pants and started unbuttoning her top.

"I'm doing you a massive so favour so hurry up and hide before Bellamy comes in!" Clarke hissed.

"Bellamy, wait-," Lincoln pleaded again. Octavia's eyes widened and she dove under the bed just as Bellamy threw the door open. Clarke did her best to look surprised as Bellamy burst in, his expression immediately turning from one of rage to one of total shock.

"Clarke," he choked out. His gaze travelled over her body and it occurred to Clarke then that she was standing there in her underwear. She was pretty sure the blush that followed went all the way down to her toes, she was that embarrassed. Bellamy politely averted his eyes, looking at the ground instead of at her.

"I'm sorry, I thought-," he cut himself off.

"It's fine,' Clarke grimaced. Lincoln poked his head in the door.

"Sorry, Lincoln," Bellamy apologised.

"Uhh, it's okay," Lincoln replied, giving Clarke a look of confusion. "Do you mind though? I'm still naked."

"Right! Sorry," Bellamy coughed and made for the hallway, shooting Clarke one last troubled glance over his shoulder as he left. Lincoln closed the door behind him.

"Thanks for that," he said gratefully.

"Yeah um, could you put some clothes on before we have this conversation?" Clarke said, looking at the ceiling. Lincoln quickly dressed as Clarke pulled on her own clothes and Octavia crawled out from under the bed.

"Clarke," Octavia said, putting her underwear back on, "thank you so much. We seriously owe you."

"You bet your ass you do. Not only did I break my promise to your brother to let him know what you two were up to, he's also now seen me in my underwear, so there's that," Clarke scowled.

"You know, you didn't really _need_ to get undressed. Just being in here would have been enough," Octavia pointed out.

"It would have looked suspicious if Lincoln was naked and I was fully dressed," Clarke defended.

"If you say so. And hey, If it makes you feel any better, I think he was impressed," Octavia smirked.

"Will you two get out so I can clean this room?" Clarke huffed, pushing the two of them out the door. "Go make up your alibi."

Clarke's heart was still pounding as she pushed a cackling Octavia out the door. It must have been from the adrenalin of having to make up such a huge lie. She sat down on the bed for a second and put her head in her hands, wondering how she was going to be able to look Bellamy in the eye from now on.


	8. Matchmaker

Clarke hesitantly knocked on the door to Bellamy's study that night, bringing him his dinner since he hadn't come down to eat with Octavia.

"Come in," he called and Clarke pushed the door open with her hip, carrying the plate and a drink and setting it down in front of him on the desk.

"Thanks," he said, and Clarke nodded and went to leave. "Clarke," he stopped her. She turned and waited patiently for him to speak. "I just wanted to say how sorry I am for you know… walking in," he grimaced.

"It's fine, really," she assured him. She already felt guilty about lying to him, he was only making it worse by apologising.

"No, seriously, I feel like such a jerk. I thought he was with Octavia," Bellamy explained.

"I know. Let's just forget about it," Clarke urged him. Bellamy nodded. When she first met him, she had thought he must be a very trusting person to let her into his home so easily, but she was quickly learning that wasn't the case at all. He was generous, and he liked to give people a chance, but Clarke wasn't sure he truly trusted anyone, not even Octavia. Then again, his sister was giving him good reason not to trust her, although he didn't know it.

"What would you have done if it had been Octavia?" Clarke asked Bellamy curiously. Bellamy shrugged.

"What does it matter? It's not going to happen now that you're with him," Bellamy pointed out. "I hope you two are very happy together," he said, and turned back to his computer. Clarke took that as her dismissal and left the room. She had been going to act like the thing with Lincoln was a once off, but she supposed if Bellamy thought she and Lincoln were actually a couple then he wouldn't suspect Octavia. Octavia really did owe her.

* * *

After Clarke finished at eight on Saturday night, she was going to head over to Maya's so Maya could continue her cooking lessons. Her plans were thwarted, however, when Raven showed up at the front door.

"Come on, we're going to see a movie," Raven told her, dragging her outside by her arm.

"But I'm supposed to be meeting Maya," Clarke protested.

"She can come too," Raven decided, shoving Clarke into her truck.

"Don't you have any other friends?" Clarke sighed.

"Nope. Where does Maya live?"

Clarke gave Raven Maya's address and they picked her up before driving to Ark Hill's sole cinema. Clarke and Maya had both never heard of the movie they were going to see, but Raven seemed excited by it.

As Raven went to buy the tickets Clarke turned to talk to Maya, only to find the girl hiding behind her and staring at the line for popcorn.

"Maya?" Clarke said. "What are you doing?"

"Jasper's over there," Maya whispered.

"Okay… you don't have to whisper. He can't hear you. Also, why are you hiding from him? I thought you liked him," Clarke pointed out.

"I _do,_ " Maya stressed. "That's why I'm hiding. I never know what to say to him. I always sound so uncool." Clarke watched as Monty handed Jasper a piece of popcorn, Jasper threw it in the air and tried to catch in his mouth and promptly tripped over his own feet and crashed into Monty, sending the popcorn flying everywhere.

"I really don't think that matters," Clarke said dryly. "Jasper! Monty!" she called brightly.

"Noooo!" Maya groaned quietly. Jasper and Monty looked up to see Clarke beckoning them. Jasper grinned and the two of them walked over.

"Hey Clarke, hey Maya," Jasper nodded.

"Hi Jasper," Maya smiled shyly. It was adorable really.

"I got the tickets!" Raven yelled as she joined the group. "Hey, I know you," she pointed at Monty. "You fixed Wick's computer. Monty, right?"

"That's me," Monty grinned.

"You guys should sit with us," Clarke suggested.

"Thanks," Monty said. "I'd offer to share our popcorn, but…" he glanced over at the mess Jasper had made.

"Whoops," Jasper shrugged sheepishly.

"Shall we go in?" Clarke suggested. The group entered the cinema and found their seats, Clarke managing to arrange it so that Maya was sitting next to Jasper. Maya grimaced at Clarke and Clarke just gave her a look that said "you can thank me later."

Clarke spent the entire movie glancing over at Maya and Jasper to see how things were going. They weren't talking much, but they were both smiling, and at one stage she caught Jasper just looking at Maya while Maya watched the movie. Jasper looked back at the screen in embarrassment when he caught Clarke looking at him.

"That was shit," Raven complained after the movie had finished. "I'm never trusting Wick's advice ever again."

"I liked it," Monty countered.

"Well, he can gush about it to you from now on," Raven rolled her eyes. "Come on girls, let's go."

"Hey, Maya, I can give you a lift home if you like?" Jasper offered. Maya glanced at Clarke who gave her an encouraging nod.

"Okay, sure," Maya agreed. The two of them walked outside, with Monty rolling his eyes at Raven and Clarke before trailing after them.

"Playing matchmaker are we?" Raven smirked as the two of them walked to Raven's truck.

"What? They're cute together!" Clarke said defensively.

"I never said they weren't!" Raven laughed. "But before you get any ideas about being the next Emma, you can stay right away from my love life," she warned.

"Speaking of which, how is Wick?" Clarke teased.

"Shut up. I told you, it's never going to happen," Raven snorted. "And how is your little crush going?"

"Well Bellamy now thinks I'm dating Lincoln so there's that," Clarke shook her head with a sigh.

"And why does he think that?" Raven wondered.

"It's a long story," Clarke grimaced.

"I've got time."

* * *

After Clarke had filled Raven in on the Lincoln and Octavia incident, and Raven had laughed far too hard for Clarke's liking, Raven dropped her back home.

"Finally, you're back!" Octavia said in relief, grabbing Clarke's shoulders as she walked through the door.

"What's going on?" Clarke asked in confusion.

"Bellamy decided it was family night and he's been making me play games with him all night," Octavia grimaced.

"Octavia, it's your turn!" Bellamy called from the living room.

"We're playing monopoly. Please save me," Octavia begged. Clarke just grinned at her.

"You guys are so cute! I don't want to intrude on family time, so I'll leave you to it," she said sweetly.

"I hate you," Octavia groaned. "Next time you go out, you're taking him with you!"

"Octavia!" Bellamy called again.

"I'm coming!" Octavia called back. She glared at Clarke who just grinned wider before Octavia stomped back to the living room.

Once Octavia had left her, Clarke headed to Lincoln's room and knocked on the door.

"Yeah!" he called and Clarke entered the room.

"Clarke," he said, looking up from the book he was reading. "What's up?"

"I just thought you should know, Bellamy thinks you and I are dating now. It's probably best for you and Octavia if we just go with it," Clarke told him.

"Noted," Lincoln nodded. He put his book down and got up off his bed. "Just so you know, we are so grateful that you covered for us. I know you don't want to lie to Bellamy," Lincoln said sincerely.

"Yeah, I don't. But I also don't want you to get fired. So I'll keep my mouth shut," Clarke assured him.

"I want you to know that I'm not just messing around with Octavia. I really like her," Lincoln said. "I wouldn't jeopardise this job, or Octavia's relationship with her brother for less than this."

"I know," Clarke nodded. "I hope one day you'll be able to tell him."

"Me too."


	9. Decoy

It was a week later when Octavia burst into Clarke's room at seven am, jumping on her bed and waking her up.

"Hey, so you know that favour you owe me?" Octavia asked, without waiting for Clarke to be properly awake.

"I believe it's _you_ who owes _me_ a favour," Clarke reminded her, sitting up groggily.

"Small detail. Look, I need to have sex," Octavia huffed.

"Right now? I just woke up. Can it wait until tonight?" Clarke complained jokingly. Although, she wasn't sure if she would say no if Octavia really did want to have sex with her.

"Not with you!" Octavia slapped Clarke lightly on the arm. "With Lincoln! But Bellamy is _always_ around. It's impossible."

"What do you want me to do about it?" Clarke asked her.

"Distract him for the night. Take him out somewhere," Octavia suggested.

"Take him out somewhere? Are you serious?" Clarke scoffed.

"Not like a date! Just get him out of the house," Octavia clarified.

"How am I supposed to do that?" Clarke wondered. She was glad Octavia was being nice to her now, but she didn't know how she felt about being used as a decoy so that Octavia could have a lot of sex while Clarke herself got none.

"I already have a plan. You were going to the movies but Raven and Maya suddenly decided they couldn't go. Lincoln's going to pretend to be sick so you can't go with him and Bellamy won't be able to resist saving the day and offering to go with you," Octavia grinned proudly at her foolproof plan.

"Fine," Clarke groaned. "Now will you leave me alone? I have to get ready for work."

"Okay, okay! Thanks Clarke, I owe you!" Octavia called sweetly as she left the room.

"Yeah, yeah," Clarke grumbled, suspecting Octavia would probably never make good on her supposed debt to Clarke.

* * *

"Clarke, what are you up to tonight?" Octavia asked as Clarke brought them their dinner. She gave Clarke a meaningful look and Clarke took the hint, though she rolled her eyes.

"I was going to the movies, but Raven and Maya backed out on me. And since Lincoln's sick and all I can't go which is a shame because I was really looking forward to it," Clarke recited, wondering if she sounded as fake as she felt.

"Oh, that's too bad," Octavia sympathised looking at her brother.

"Maybe Octavia could go with you," Bellamy suggested. Octavia's eyes widened. Clearly she hadn't thought of that possibility.

"Oh no, I can't," Octavia said hurriedly. "I've already seen it. Maybe you should go with her," she said, nudging her brother in the right direction. Bellamy looked up at Clarke.

"I guess I could… if you don't feel like going alone," Bellamy shrugged.

"I would hate to go alone," Clarke assured him.

"Great, then it's settled!" Octavia clapped her hands and started eating. "By the way Clarke, your cooking has improved tremendously."

* * *

She was nervous. It wasn't a date of course, but it sure felt like one as she and Bellamy walked to her car together after she'd finished working and changed into something more comfortable. Not _too_ comfortable of course, she still wanted to look good. Clarke unlocked the car and was about to get into the driver's seat when Bellamy grabbed her shoulder.

"Clarke," he said slowly, looking a little troubled.

"What is it?" she asked in concern, turning to face him.

"Before we go, I have to ask… have you heard… what people have been saying about us?" he inquired.

"You mean the part where we're sleeping together or the part where you're paying me to do so?" Clarke answered with a snort.

"Shit," Bellamy swore. "I didn't know about the second part."

"Yeah," Clarke said flatly, not looking him in the eye.

"I'm so sorry. Look, I want you to know, I don't have any… intentions towards you," Bellamy said awkwardly. Clarke knew he didn't but she couldn't help but be a little disappointed anyway. "But if people see us together it might only fuel the rumours," he pointed out. She understood then, why he was saying all these things.

"Okay," Clarke nodded. "I get it. You don't want to ruin your reputation. We don't have to go," she said nonchalantly, though it stung a little. Also, Octavia would be pissed if they didn't leave. Knowing her she was probably already all over Lincoln, so walking back into the house now wasn't the best idea. Still, she couldn't force him to go if he didn't want to.

"I don't care about my reputation," Bellamy laughed, shaking his head. "God knows that's already shot to hell. I care about you."

"You do?" Clarke said incredulously.

"Yes, and I want to make sure you think you can handle people talking about us," he explained. "I want you to be comfortable in this town. In my house."

"I can handle it," Clarke smiled up at him.

"Good," Bellamy smiled back. "Let's go."

* * *

The cinema was only playing three movies, and since she'd already seen one of them last week and one was a children's movie, (she wanted Bellamy to think she was grown up, okay?) she figured she may as well see the other one.

The problem was, she couldn't really concentrate on the movie at all. It was some kind of romantic comedy but the plot was lost on her because she kept glancing at Bellamy, all too aware of his presence in the darkened room next to her, their arms brushing occasionally.

As far as Clarke could tell Bellamy wasn't having any trouble keeping up with the movie as she never saw his eyes leave the screen, though she didn't hear him laugh at all either. Then again, maybe the movie wasn't very funny, she wouldn't know as she hadn't taken any of it in. The only part of the movie that managed to capture her attention for an extended amount of the time was the scene where the couple made passionate love in a boathouse, and even then she was mostly just trying not to think about _him._ She knew she had a crush on him, but if she started _imagining_ things, she knew it would turn into a lost cause.

She wrung her hands tightly in her lap, glancing across at Bellamy, the pictures of the movie reflected in his eyes. He didn't look at her but the corners of his lips turned up in a smile.

"Stop looking at me," he whispered.

"Sorry," Clarke flicked her eyes back to the screen, her face heating up. She was glad it was dark. "It's just… this movie sucks," she told him, coming out with the first excuse she could think of.

"I agree," Bellamy chuckled. "Should we leave?"

"No!" Clarke burst out quickly, earning an annoyed glance from the person in front of her. They couldn't go home early or they might interrupt Octavia and Lincoln and that could only lead to disaster.

"We'll be quiet. No one will even notice we're leaving," Bellamy whispered.

"It's not that," Clarke said. "I just… don't want to go home yet. It's so early," she complained.

"We don't have to go home," he assured her.

"Okay," she agreed. Hopefully she could clear her head of inappropriate thoughts about her boss if they weren't acting like they were on the most cliché date ever. Her inappropriate thoughts weren't even inherently sexual… but she knew entertaining any kind of thoughts about romantic interaction with him would just be asking to have her heart broken.

"Where are we going to go?" she asked Bellamy once they were out of the cinema and her car.

"Well, there's not much open at this time," Bellamy admitted. "Except the pub, and it's probably inappropriate for me to take an eighteen year old to a bar."

"Raven took me there. In fact I believe you told her to," Clarke reminded him.

"Do you really want to go to a bar?" Bellamy asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Well, not really," Clarke admitted with a smile.

"So where do you want to go?"

"I have no idea," Clarke shook her head.

"What do you like to do?" Bellamy asked her. Clarke considered for a moment.

"I like to paint," she said matter-of-factly,

"You like to paint? I didn't know," Bellamy sounded surprised.

"I guess I haven't really had any time to paint… plus I don't have any of the materials," Clarke shrugged.

"Is that what you want to do? I mean as a career?" Bellamy asked. Clarke shrugged again.

"I don't really know anymore," she sighed, turning away from Bellamy and tracing her fingers across the dust on her dashboard. She really should clean her car at some point. "I used to think I wanted to be an artist. Then I thought I wanted to be a doctor. Now I haven't got a clue. I guess that's part of the reason I ran away." Bellamy nodded. She could tell he wanted to know more about her past, but he didn't push her. Clarke fell silent then, not wanting to reveal anymore.

"You know, I ran away once too," Bellamy told her, once he realised she wasn't going to go on.

"Seriously?" Clarke smirked, a little disbelievingly.

"Yeah. When my mom was pregnant with Octavia. I thought that meant she wouldn't love me as much anymore so I packed a sandwich in a backpack and got about two blocks before she came after me," Bellamy shook his head, smiling at the memory.

"Have you always lived in Ark Hill?" Clarke asked.

"Yeah," Bellamy nodded. "We didn't always have money though… we used to rent the place I rent to Jasper and Monty now. Then when my father died, he left me everything. He didn't have anyone else to leave it to. So I bought the peach farm and the house from the old couple living there."

"Why are you telling me all this?" Clarke wondered, feeling a little guilty that he was telling her all about his past when she had told him next to nothing. It wasn't even that she was hiding anything that bad, it's just that she hated thinking about it. And talking about it meant she had to think about it.

"I don't know," Bellamy shrugged. "I guess I just trust you. I just wanted you to know."

"Bellamy…" Clarke started. She wanted him to know that just because he had opened up didn't mean _she_ was going to.

"It's okay, Clarke, you don't have to tell me anything," Bellamy smiled, if a little sadly. Clarke gave him a relieved smile in return. "So what do you like to paint?"

They spent the next hour just sitting in Clarke's car talking about trivial things like whether cats or dogs were better, which Harry Potter book was the best and how horrible the movie was, though neither confessed they hadn't actually been paying attention to it.

When they finally realised how long they'd been sitting there and went home, they found Octavia innocently sitting up in the living room reading a magazine.

"How was your night?" she asked.

"It was nice," Clarke smiled with a glance at Bellamy.

"The movie was good then?"

"Not at all," Bellamy laughed. "Goodnight!" he called, heading off to his room while Octavia raised her eyebrows quizzically.

"Why are you smiling like that?" she asked Clarke.

"I'm not smiling," Clarke denied, forcing her mouth downwards.

"God, I can't believe you have a crush on my brother, that is so gross," Octavia screwed up her nose.

"Oh shut up," Clarke said, not even bothering to deny it.

"Whatever!" Octavia rolled her eyes and left the room while Clarke mouth made its way back into a smile.


	10. Fools

Bellamy wasn't around on Sunday morning, and Clarke and Octavia spent the morning lazing around while Octavia searched jobs online and Clarke played sudoku on her phone. The girls lifted their heads when they heard the door slam and Bellamy walk in at around one.

"I bought lunch," Bellamy called. "It's Chinese." Octavia raced from the room and nearly barrelled Bellamy over as he walked through the door. She grabbed the bag of food from Bellamy and made her way to the kitchen to get plates. Clarke smiled at Bellamy and stood up and walked towards him.

"I got something for you too," Bellamy said. "A present. It's not a cookbook this time," he grinned. Clarke laughed and took the box from Bellamy's outstretched arm. She opened it and gasped in delight when she found a set of paints inside.

"You didn't have to do this," she scolded him, but she couldn't have been happier.

"Do you like it?" he asked. Clarke nodded and she wanted to hug him, but she held back.

"I love it," she said instead.

"Good," Bellamy smiled. "Let's go and eat."

* * *

"Something terrible has happened," Raven said over the phone, having called Clarke up on Monday afternoon.

"What's wrong?" Clarke asked her worriedly.

"I did something really, _really_ stupid," Raven groaned.

"What did you do?" Clarke pressed.

"I can't tell you over the phone," Raven said.

"That bad, huh?" Clarke sympathised. "But we're both at work. It's going to have to wait until tonight."

"I'm not at work. I can't go to work," Raven said dismally. "I'm coming over."

Clarke let Raven in when she arrived and decided Bellamy wouldn't mind if she took an extra break today. Clarke made Raven and herself some coffee and they sat in the kitchen and Clarke waited for Raven to spill her guts about this supposed terrible thing that had happened.

"So? What happened?" Clarke prompted. Raven cringed and gave Clarke a look of pain.

"Don't judge me," Raven warned.

"Fine. Would you just spit it out already?" Clarke huffed.

"I slept with Wick," Raven blurted. Clarke's eyes bulged out of her head.

"Raven!" she exclaimed.

"You said you wouldn't judge!" Raven reminded her.

"I'm not judging!" Clarke denied. "But you said you'd never go there," she pointed out.

"It was an accident," Raven said defensively. Clarke just raised her eyebrows at her friend. "Okay, it was on purpose. But I wasn't thinking straight."

"Tell me exactly what happened," Clarke demanded.

"He came over last night and said he needed to discuss something with me, and of course I figured it was something about work so I let him in. Except then he didn't say anything so I got him a drink and we sat on the couch and I waited patiently for him to say what he needed to but by then it was becoming obvious he wasn't there to talk about work because he was all nervous," Raven recounted.

"And?" Clarke urged her to continue, fully invested in the story.

"I told him not to say anything he might regret. He agreed and said he had to go. He was halfway to the door when I stopped him…" Raven trailed off, screwing up her nose at the memory.

"And what did you say?" Clarke asked.

"I didn't _say_ anything. I just kissed him. And he was very eager to respond… and then we ended up in my bed," Raven finished. "I'm such an idiot, Clarke!" she wailed.

"No you aren't!" Clarke refuted. "You guys like each other, what does it matter if he's your boss?" Raven gave Clarke a pointed look, and Clarke looked a little guilty. She hadn't meant to sound like she was talking about Bellamy.

"Okay, I admit, what people say doesn't bother me that much," Raven sighed. "But what if it doesn't work out? I'll have to get a new job or leave town or something."

"But you have to give it a shot," Clarke advised. "You know you do."

"Maybe you and I could date instead," Raven suggested. The girls looked up as Bellamy poked his head into the kitchen.

"Oh, hi Raven," he said. Raven nodded in greeting. "Clarke, could you drive me to the bank when you're done there? I have an appointment at four thirty."

"Of course," Clarke responded. Bellamy smiled and left the room. "You should probably go," Clarke said. "We can go for a drink after I finish work if you want to?"

"Sounds perfect," Raven agreed and Clarke showed her out before going to find Bellamy. She could hear the sound of raised voices coming from the living room so she made her way there, stopping outside the door. She knew should make her presence known but she couldn't resist eavesdropping a little.

"Because, he's Clarke's boyfriend, Octavia," Bellamy was saying angrily. "And besides that, he's ten years older than you! Why can't you find someone your own age? What about Jasper?"

"Jasper's with Maya now," Octavia retorted.

"The point still stands," Bellamy argued.

"You're such a fucking hypocrite, Bellamy," Octavia snapped exasperatedly.

"What are you talking about?" Bellamy huffed.

"You think I don't notice you staring at Clarke when she's not looking? It's pathetic," Octavia snorted. Clarke sucked in a breath. Was Octavia telling the truth? Or was she just trying to get under her brother's skin?

"You have no idea what you're talking about," Bellamy said shortly. Clarke decided she had heard enough and barged into the room.

"Ready to go?" she asked Bellamy brightly. Bellamy nodded and gave his sister a look of warning. Octavia rolled her eyes and flounced out of the room. Bellamy and Clarke walked to Clarke's car in silence.

"Clarke," Bellamy said as they got into the car. "You should watch out for Octavia. I love my sister, but when she wants something… well she goes after it," he shook his head.

"Goes after what exactly?" Clarke asked, feigning ignorance as she started the car.

"Your boyfriend," Bellamy said. "I'm afraid she hasn't given up on him. I caught her flirting with him this afternoon. And if I'm being honest, Lincoln didn't seem to mind," he warned.

"I'm sure it's nothing to worry about," Clarke shrugged.

"I just don't want you to get hurt," Bellamy said. "And I certainly don't want Octavia involved with Lincoln."

"Do you think he's a bad person?" Clarke asked. "Do you not approve of… my relationship with him?"

"I think he's a fine person," Bellamy assured her. "And I have no right to an opinion on your relationship."

"Then what are your objections? I mean, if Octavia was to be with Lincoln instead of me?" Clarke wondered. Bellamy shook his head.

"Octavia is irresponsible," Bellamy told her. "Getting involved with someone so much older than her worries me, because I feel like she could be too easy influenced. She doesn't realise how she could be manipulated," Bellamy sighed. "Like our mother was."

"I think Octavia is smarter than you give her credit for," Clarke said. Bellamy didn't respond.

Bellamy asked Clarke to wait for him while he went to his appointment at the bank, and when he came out his eyes were stormy and his jaw clenched.

"It didn't go well?" Clarke guessed when he got into the car. Bellamy shook his head.

"I need a drink. Let's go to the pub," he said. Clarke nodded and drove to the closest bar. Bellamy got out of the car and made to go inside, but stopped when he saw Clarke still sitting in the car. "Aren't you coming?"

"I'm still on the clock," Clarke reminded him.

"I'm your boss and I order you to come and drink with me," Bellamy said without a trace of humour. Clarke nodded and got out of the car, following Bellamy inside.

"Do you mind if I invite Raven? She's had a bad day too," Clarke asked once they were sitting in a booth with a drink each.

"Go ahead," Bellamy nodded. Clarke called Raven, and by the time she arrived, Clarke and Bellamy were already on their fourth drinks and were discussing lucid dreaming very intensely.

"Raven!" Clarke exclaimed when Raven joined them in the booth. "You have to catch up, we're on our fourth."

"Gladly," Raven grinned and walked over to the bar.

"So you can really lucid dream?" Clarke asked, going back to their previous conversation. Bellamy nodded.

"So how do you do it?" Clarke asked, leaning towards him interestedly.

"You have to make yourself realise you're asleep," Bellamy told her. "It takes practice."

"So what do you like to dream about?" Clarke asked, the alcohol making her voice sound sultry. Bellamy paused, considering her for a moment. Did she imagine his eyes flickering down to her lips?

"I think it's best if I don't tell you," he replied huskily.

"What'd I miss?" Raven asked, sliding in next to Clarke, pushing her a little closer to Bellamy. Raven plonked a tray of drinks on the table, grabbing one and skulling half of it.

"We were talking about lucid dreaming," Clarke told her.

"Cool," Raven nodded. "So did you guys hear Karen MacMillan has herpes?"

Three hours later the three of them were still drinking and they were on to telling each other the worst jokes they could come up with.

"So then the duck says, "Got any bread?" and the bartender says... noooooooooooo," Raven exclaimed.

"Is that the punchline?" Clarke asked. "I don't get it."

"No! Hide me! Wick just walked in!" she said. She seemed to be trying to whisper but it really wasn't working. She tried to hide behind Clarke but Wick saw her almost immediately and he strode over purposefully.

"Raven," he said seriously.

"Kyle," Raven replied with a nod.

"Where have you been? You didn't come to work, I've been calling you all day," Wick said.

"Well, I'm right here," Raven gestured around her with both arms.

"I need to talk to you," he said, sliding into the booth next to her.

"So talk," Raven shrugged.

"I think I need some air," Clarke said hurriedly. "Bellamy?"

"Mmm, me too," Bellamy agreed and the two of them stood up. Raven glared at Clarke as they walked outside through the side door. It was cooler outside, but still fairly warm and Clarke leant against the warm bricks.

"What's going on with those two?" Bellamy asked her.

"Who knows?" Clarke shrugged. "They had sex. Raven is wary of getting into a relationship with her boss."

"Smart," Bellamy nodded. He sighed and leant against the wall next to her, their arms brushing. "Clarke, I feel like I should tell you something."

"What is it?" Clarke asked, looking at him intently, though he didn't return her gaze.

"It's about… why I was at the bank today," Bellamy said. He paused a moment and Clarke waited for him to go on. "The truth is, I'm totally broke. That's why I sold the car. Why I only have four people picking peaches for me. Why Octavia was so mad I hired you. I was trying to get a loan today but they denied me. I'll probably have to sell the house and the farm," Bellamy confessed. Clarke didn't say anything, just stared at him in shock. She felt like she shouldn't have been surprised though, all the signs were there.

"Echo, our previous maid," Bellamy continued. "Well, she tricked me. She got me to trust her. I told her way too much personal information. I allowed her in my study. I stupidly slept with her, and the next morning she was gone, along with everything in my bank account."

"I'm sorry," Clarke whispered. Bellamy finally turned his head to face her, and only then did she realise how close the two of them were really standing. "Were you in love with her?"

"No, thankfully," Bellamy replied. He shifted his body towards her, his chest pressing against her, his lips centimetres from her own. Clarke's heart was thumping rapidly and she could hardly think straight. "I really wish I could kiss you right now," Bellamy breathed and Clarke's stomach flipped over.

"Why can't you?" she whispered back.

"You have a boyfriend, remember? And also I'm your boss, and I'm so much older than you. It would be wrong. And besides we're very drunk," Bellamy said, and Clarke knew he was right, but she still wanted him to kiss her anyway.

"I don't care," Clarke responded.

"You know when you asked before, about what I like to dream about?" Bellamy asked, his face still only an inch from her own, so close their noses almost brushed. Clarke nodded, her eyes focused solely on his lips. "The answer is you. I always dream about you."

"I thought you said you didn't have any intentions towards me," Clarke reminded him breathlessly.

"I lied," Bellamy said simply and he closed the gap between their lips in one swift motion and Clarke heard herself moan desperately, her hands coming up to rest on his chest. She would never get to find out what would happen next though, as Wick's voice echoed across the parking lot.

"Bellamy! Clarke! Come on, I'm taking you all home," he called. Clarke and Bellamy broke apart. She knew Wick couldn't see them where they were standing, but somehow Clarke felt like she'd been caught doing something wrong.

"I'm sorry," Bellamy said, before striding towards Wick, leaving Clarke to follow.


	11. Confession

Drinking on a Monday night turned out to not be the greatest idea in history Clarke soon discovered when she awoke on Tuesday morning. She wasn't as hungover as she could have been had Wick not taken them all home when he did, but she still wasn't great.

Clarke dragged herself out of bed and got in the shower and only once she was standing under the hot water did the events of last night come flooding back to her. Bellamy was broke, thanks to Echo. It explained a lot. Clarke wondered briefly if she should leave, now that she knew. He was probably finding it hard to pay her. She quickly shook the idea from her mind though when she remembered what had happened next. Bellamy had kissed her. He had _kissed_ her. Even though he thought he shouldn't. And he said he always dreamed about her. She didn't know what that meant for them now, whether or not there was any future in it, but she knew one thing for certain. She couldn't keep pretending Lincoln was her boyfriend, or she'd never find out.

Once she was showered and dressed, Clarke made herself some breakfast and a coffee, and did the same for Octavia when she came down a few minutes later.

"You look like shit," Octavia told her.

"Thanks," Clarke rolled her eyes and joined Octavia at the dining table. "Look, Octavia, I can't pretend I'm dating Lincoln anymore," Clarke said seriously.

"Why not?" Octavia whined.

"I- I just can't, okay? I don't like lying to Bellamy," Clarke explained.

"Is this because you're in love with him?" Octavia asked knowingly.

"I'm not in love with him," Clarke denied. Octavia rolled her eyes. "You have to tell him about you and Lincoln eventually," Clarke pointed out.

"Fine," Octavia agreed, resigned. "But you have to let me do it in my own way. Can you just keep pretending for a few more days?" Clarke nodded.

"What's your plan?" she asked.

"Well, I thought we could have a nice dinner. The four of us. You, me, Bell and Lincoln. I can help you cook. And if I tell him over dinner maybe he won't make a scene," Octavia said, but she looked dubious. Clarke nodded, she had more faith that Bellamy would be able to accept Lincoln and Octavia. It would probably take him some time, but she knew honesty was the right choice. The longer they lied about it, the worse his reaction would be.

"Saturday night?" Clarke suggested. That was as long as she was willing to carry this on for.

"Saturday," Octavia agreed.

* * *

At eleven, Clarke made up the usual picnic for the workers and headed out into the orchard to deliver it to them. The sky was stormy and Clarke thought it might rain later.

"Hey Clarke, I hear you guys had a big night last night," Jasper laughed as he grabbed the cooler from Clarke's hands. The others gathered around as Jasper handed out the food.

"You could say that," Clarke replied, glancing at Bellamy. "My pounding head would have to agree."

"I'm just sad you didn't invite us," Monty grinned.

"How did you get Bellamy so drunk that he doesn't remember anything?" Harper asked looking at her boss with a slight smirk. "He hardly ever drinks." Clarke looked at Bellamy as he grinned awkwardly.

"You don't remember anything?" she asked him, trying to hide the disappointment in her voice.

"My mind is pretty much blank from when Raven brought us that tray of drinks," Bellamy shook his head. "Why, do you?"

"No," Clarke lied quickly. "Not a thing." There was an awkward pause before Jasper spoke up again.

"Man, you guys must have really been wasted!" he chuckled.

"Yeah," Clarke smiled stiffly. "I should get back to work." She headed back inside with a heavy heart. It crossed her mind that Bellamy could have just been saying he didn't remember anything so that he didn't have to tell his workers anything, she just wasn't sure how to ask him discreetly, without seeming too invested in his remembrance. Plus she'd already told him she didn't remember anything either. She couldn't exactly walk up to him and say "Hey, do remember kissing me, because I remember it in excruciating detail and I really wish we could do it again." That probably wouldn't fly, especially if he really didn't remember.

"So, you don't remember _anything_ , from last night? Not even how pathetic Raven was when Wick came in?" was the best she could come up with when he walked into the kitchen that night while she was cooking dinner. Which reminded her, she should probably call Raven later and see how things had worked out.

"I don't even remember Wick being there," Bellamy chuckled, sticking his finger into the curry sauce she was making.

"He drove us home," Clarke told him.

"Right," Bellamy nodded. "I'll leave you to it then.'

* * *

After she had knocked off for the night, Clarke called Raven.

"What happened with Wick?" Clarke asked as soon as Raven picked up. Raven was silent for a moment. "Are you there?"

"Yes, I'm here," Raven responded.

"So?" Clarke pressed.

"Well… uh…" Raven stalled and Clarke wondered if something really awful had happened. She then heard some scuffling sounds and then Wick's voice came through the receiver.

"Hey, Griffin," he said, and Clarke could swear she could hear him smiling.

"So are you guys together now?" Clarke asked, and she was grinning too.

"Yep!" Wick answered. "She wasn't really in a state for talking last night but when I gave her breakfast and coffee this morning she was seeing me in a more favourable light."

"I'm glad," Clarke smiled.

"How are you and Bellamy?" Wick asked.

"What?" Clarke replied quickly, thinking for a moment that he had in fact seen them kissing in the alley.

"You guys seemed pretty smashed last night. Did you have a hangover?" Wick clarified.

"Oh, yeah. The worst," Clarke said in relief.

* * *

Bellamy acted normal the whole week, and showed no sign of anything having changed between them, so Clarke could only conclude that he really didn't remember kissing her. Being around him was worse than before, because now she knew what it felt like to have him pressed against her, and how his lips felt on hers. Every time he touched her, an innocent tap on the shoulder or an accidental brush of hands, it sent shivers through her and she found herself blushing much more than usual. She only hoped he didn't notice.

If he seemed suspicious about the reasons behind Octavia's dinner plans for Saturday night, he didn't show it. It was stormy that night, and Clarke wondered if it was a bad omen for Octavia's plans. Octavia insisted they all dress up for the occasion, and that was when Bellamy started asking questions. He called Clarke into his room to help him pick a tie, or so he said. Clarke suspected it was just so he could grill her about Octavia's motivations. Clarke herself was wearing a dress she had borrowed from Octavia.

"Which tie?" he asked. Clarke picked one and he placed it around his neck.

"Why are we doing this again?" he asked as he wrapped the tie around itself while Clarke watched on.

"Octavia wants a nice family dinner," Clarke shrugged.

"But why do I have to wear a tie?" he complained. "Can you help me with this?" he gestured to the mess of a knot he'd made in the tie. Clarke sighed and walked over to him and began untying.

"Why do you have to ask so many questions?" Clarke asked. She focused on getting the tie right and not on how close he was standing or the smell of his aftershave.

"I'm just confused," Bellamy said. Clarke finished with the tie and smoothed his shirt with her hands. She quickly pulled her hands away when she realised what she was doing. She looked up to see him staring down at her.

"Come on," Clarke said, stepping back before she could do or say something stupid. "Dinner will nearly be ready." Bellamy followed her to the dining room where Lincoln was waiting.

"Clarke!" Octavia called from the kitchen. Clarke hurried into the kitchen to help her. "I think it's done, will you help me take it out?"

Octavia had cooked a roast chicken with vegetables with Clarke's help and though neither of them were going to be winning any awards for their cooking, it looked and smelt pretty good. They served up the meal and joined Bellamy and Lincoln at the dining table.

Clarke was on edge the whole way through dinner, and from what she could tell, Octavia and Lincoln weren't exactly calm either. Bellamy seemed to notice and kept giving Clarke confused looks.

"Shall we have dessert?" Octavia asked in a high pitched voice, standing up.

"How about you tell me what the hell is going on first?" Bellamy said sternly. Octavia cringed and sat back down slowly. Clarke had never seen her look so scared.

"Well, the thing is Bell, and please don't be mad," Octavia started, glancing at Lincoln. "Clarke isn't dating Lincoln. I am." The whole table was silent for a minute as Bellamy processed this information. His jaw was clenched and Clarke could see him gripping his knife with growing vigour. A crash of thunder broke the silence before Octavia spoke.

"Bell?" Octavia said hesitantly.

"How long has this been going on?" Bellamy asked calmly.

"A few weeks," Octavia admitted.

"Right," Bellamy nodded. He was taking this better than anyone had expected. "Well, Lincoln, obviously you're fired." Okay, maybe not. "You can get your stuff and leave right now."

"Bell!" Octavia protested. Bellamy couldn't hold his temper any longer.

"What were you thinking Octavia?" he yelled, standing up and dropping his knife. "I told you to stay away from him! And now I find out you've been secretly seeing him this whole time? Go to your room!"

"You aren't my father! You can't tell me what to do!" Octavia screamed back.

"Bellamy, please," Lincoln tried. "This isn't just some silly fling. I really love her."

"You barely know her!" Bellamy yelled. "She's eighteen for Christ's sake! You should know better! I trusted you in my home and I gave you a job, and this is how you repay me? By screwing my sister?"

"It's not like that!" Lincoln denied. He was much calmer than Bellamy, but it was clear he was fighting a losing battle.

"Get out of my house," Bellamy growled, getting up in Lincoln's face. Lincoln took a step back before nodding.

"No!" Octavia cried. "Lincoln don't go."

"Just for now," Lincoln whispered to her.

"I'll come with you," Octavia said.

"The hell you will," Bellamy spat. "And if you two think you'll ever see each other again you can think again." Lincoln left the room to gather his things, and Octavia burst into tears.

"I hate you!" she yelled at her brother.

"You'll thank me for this one day," Bellamy told her. "Go to your room," he commanded again. Octavia gave a strangled cry of frustration and ran from the dining room. Bellamy followed her out to make sure she didn't go to Lincoln and Clarke hurried after them. Lincoln passed them with his bag on his way out. He gave Clarke a short nod as Bellamy glared on.

"Don't you think that was a bit of an overreaction?" Clarke said quietly once Lincoln was gone. "You could have at least let him stay here tonight until the storm is over." Bellamy turned to her.

"I don't want to hear anything from you," he spat angrily.

"What are you talking about?" Clarke asked, taken aback.

"You knew about this! I asked you to keep an eye on them for me, and not only did you keep it a secret from me, you actively _lied_ to help them. I _trusted_ you, Clarke!" Bellamy started yelling again. "If anything, your betrayal is worse than there's, because at least I expected something like this from them! I thought I could count on you."

"Bellamy, you _can_ count on me," Clarke protested. "I just-," she tried to explain but Bellamy cut her off.

"Obviously I can't!" he was still screaming at her, and Clarke did her best to stop the tears that pricked her eyes from rolling down her cheeks. "I told you everything about myself! I told you about my parents, and my past. I told you about the money problems and about Echo, and all I wanted in return was that you be honest with me!" Bellamy shouted.

"I didn't ask for you to tell me any of that!" Clarke yelled back. "I didn't ask for any of this! You have no right to expect _anything_ of me!"

"You accepted the job!" Bellamy reminded her angrily. "You don't think I should be able to trust the people I employ? Who I let live in my house?!"

"You know what? You're right," Clarke said, her voice quieter now, but she could hear it shake. "And I think I've outstayed my welcome." She marched past him then, to her room and began throwing her things in her suitcase. As she packed something occurred to her. He _remembered._ He remembered telling her about Echo and the money. Which meant he could likely hardly forget what happened right after that. And he'd pretended he didn't remember because he was embarrassed about it. Or he regretted it or something like that. It only strengthened her resolve to get out of there. She'd only stayed so long because of her ridiculous crush on him anyway.

"Clarke, what are you doing?" Bellamy called after her. She came back out of her room and almost walked into him.

"I'm leaving," she said, pushing past him. She walked towards the front door and Bellamy followed after her.

"Clarke, don't be ridiculous! It's pouring out there," Bellamy called after her. She ignored him and kept walking. He followed her into the rain and to her car.

"You don't need to be out here, you'll get all wet," Clarke said, not looking at him as she threw her suitcase into the back of her car.

"Clarke, don't go," Bellamy said, his voice wavering slightly. "I'm sorry. Just don't leave." She finally turned to him then and looked at him with pain in her eyes.

"You remember," she accused. Bellamy looked away, and it was clear he knew what she was talking about.

"Clarke…" he started. Somehow she simultaneously loved and hated the way he said her name. But he didn't say anything else, so Clarke just shook her head at him and got into her car and drove away.

She shivered as she drove out of town, her wet hair and clothes sticking to her uncomfortably. She didn't know where she was going. Back home to Sacramento? Not likely. Her windscreen wipers were working at full capacity and she almost lost control of the car once or twice as she sped along the wet road. She was about 5kms out of town when she saw the red and blue lights flashing behind her. She groaned, checking her speed to see she was way over the limit. She pulled over and wound down her window as the cop got out of his car and approached her. She recognised it to be Officer Miller from her first night in town.

"Clarke Griffin," he said, recognising her. "You're Bellamy Blake's girl," he noted.

"We're not sleeping together," she scowled.

"I meant you're his maid," Miller grinned and Clarke blushed a little. "License and registration please." She handed over the necessary documents and waited for him to check them over.

"Do you know how fast you were going?" he asked as he handed them back.

"Yes. Sorry, officer," Clarke replied.

"These wet roads are dangerous, especially at night. Where are you headed?" Miller asked her. Clarke shrugged.

"Away," she said.

"Are you sure you have to leave tonight? I wouldn't want anything to happen to you," Miller said in concern. Clarke sighed. She knew he was right. She glanced at the fuel gage and noticed she had barely any left. Then she remembered she was still wearing Octavia's dress and she probably shouldn't take that with her.

"I guess not," Clarke said.

"Alright, well I'm going to let you off with a warning," Miller smiled. "Have a nice night." He left her and drove off before Clarke started the car and started back to Bellamy's house. She pulled up out the front and let herself inside quietly. All the lights were off, and she slipped off her shoes and slowly padded towards Bellamy's room in the dark. A sliver of light peeked out from the door and she pushed it open gently to see him standing there, shirtless, towel drying his wet curls.

"Clarke," he said in surprise, dropping the towel. "You came back." Clarke took a step inside and shut the door behind her.

"I realised I was still wearing Octavia's dress and I didn't want to take it with me," she said.

"Right," Bellamy nodded.

"Would you help me with it?" Clarke asked, wishing she felt as confident as she was pretending she was. Bellamy nodded once and Clarke crossed the room and turned her back to him, sweeping her damp hair from her neck so he could access the zipper. She hardly dared to breathe as she felt his warm hand on her skin, just the brush of his thumb as his hand hovered over the zipper. He pulled the zipper down slowly, pausing when he reached to bottom. Clarke could feel his breath on the back of her neck as she pushed the straps of the dress from her shoulders, letting it fall to the floor.

"Clarke," Bellamy said hoarsely. "The only reason I pretended not to remember kissing you is so that I could try and stop myself doing it again. I'm ten years older than you, Clarke," he reminded her once again. "And I'm your boss."

"It doesn't matter," Clarke whispered back. His hand rested on her waist and she closed her eyes, feeling the heat of his chest against her back.

"You know what people say about us," Bellamy said quietly.

"And?"

"If we do this, it will be true," he warned.

"Then let it be true," Clarke breathed, her eyes still closed. In an instant Bellamy had spun her around pulling her against him and crushing his lips against hers. She let out a whimper as his teeth dragged over her lower lip and his tongue brushed against hers. She wrapped her arms around his neck tightly and he moaned into her mouth, his tongue growing more insistent as his hands glided down her body to her ass and he lifted her up. She wrapped her legs around his waist and he carried her to his bed, removing her bra before laying her down gently. His lips grazed her neck as his hand found its way between her legs, caressing her softly through the thin cotton of her panties.

"Bellamy," she gasped breathlessly, bucking her hips towards him. Her eyelids fluttered and she was breathing heavily as he teased her with his lips and fingers. She whined as his fingers entered her and he moaned against her breast where his lips were devouring her. Clarke gripped his sheets in her hands, writhing with pleasure under his expert touch. She was close to coming when he stopped to roll of the bed. He fumbled in his top drawer for a condom and when he returned to the bed, Clarke had slipped off her underwear and lay naked, waiting for him, her blonde hair fanned out around her head.

"God," Bellamy breathed.

"What?" Clarke asked.

"I never thought I would be so lucky as for this to happen," Bellamy told her as he knelt on the bed. "I mean, I can't believe you're naked in my bed. You have no idea how many times I've thought about this, and told myself it was impossible," he babbled. "Are you sure? Are you sure you want to do this?" he asked anxiously.

"Bellamy," Clarke sat up and put her fingertips under his chin, kissing him softly. "I'm sure." He leant into the kiss and they fell back against the bed before he entered her, and Clarke cried out.

"Are you okay?" Bellamy asked.

"God, yes," Clarke moaned, wrapping her legs around him as he thrust into her. They moved together, their breaths coming shorter as they both worked each other to orgasm. Clarke came only seconds before he did, and they collapsed on the bed. Bellamy wrapped his arm around her and pulled her close and she smiled to herself as she closed her eyes.

"Are you happy?" Bellamy whispered against her hair.

"Perfectly," she replied.


	12. Gone

Clarke woke the next morning with a smile on her face, tangled in Bellamy's sheets and arms. He was still asleep so she delicately removed herself from his grip and slid out of his bed. She deliberated for a moment before picking his shirt up from the floor and buttoning it over her naked body. She glanced at him with another smile before padding downstairs and to the kitchen where she started making breakfast. She was just plating up when she heard Bellamy call out her name.

"Clarke?" he called, a little hesitantly.

"I'm in the kitchen!" she called back. A second later Bellamy stepped into the kitchen and she looked up and grinned at him. He was leaning against the door frame shirtless, but he'd pulled on a pair of sweat pants.

"Nice shirt," he said, raising one eyebrow, a smirk playing across his lips. "And what if Octavia were to come down at this moment?"

"Something tells me she's going to be locked up in her room for the next few months. Avoiding you as hard as possible," Clarke replied knowingly. Bellamy sighed and walked over to her.

"I guess I was a little harsh," he conceded.

"You could give Lincoln a chance. He's a good guy," Clarke said.

"And you know this from all the time you spent dating him?" Bellamy chuckled. Clarke screwed up her nose.

"I'm sorry I lied, okay?" she apologised.

"Me too," Bellamy agreed. "But only because it stopped me from doing this sooner," he smiled and brushed some hair from her face before kissing her softly. "When you weren't in bed this morning I thought for a minute you'd taken off again," he told her.

"Nope, I just made us breakfast," Clarke gestured to the meal she'd prepared, speaking quickly, trying to act like the kiss hadn't affected her.

"It's your day off," he reminded her, sitting on a barstool at the counter.

"We still have to eat," Clarke pointed out. Bellamy nodded thoughtfully.

"Clarke, listen, about last night…" Bellamy started and Clarke's heart immediately sunk. Was this the part where he told her it was all a mistake? "I think we need to talk about what this means. I mean obviously you can't be my maid anymore-," he continued, but he was cut off by the sound of the doorbell. He looked up in confusion. "Are you expecting someone?" Clarke shook her head and started towards the door. "I should probably answer it," Bellamy stopped her, gesturing to what she was wearing. Clarke nodded and Bellamy headed towards the front door.

"Can I help you?" she heard him ask.

"I'm looking for Clarke Griffin," Clarke heard a familiar voice say and her stomach plummeted to the floor. How had he found her?

"Who's asking?" Bellamy said, his voice vaguely threatening.

"I'm Wells Jaha. Her fiancé," Wells said to Bellamy. Clarke stormed from the kitchen and to the front door where the two men were standing.

"He's _not_ my fiancé," Clarke growled, her hands on her hips.

"Yes I am," Wells countered, his eyes flickered from the attire Clarke was wearing to Bellamy's naked torso, putting two and two together, but he didn't say anything about it.

"Just because you proposed doesn't make me your fiancé. I didn't say yes, so that means no engagement," she snapped. She didn't want to look at Bellamy, but one glance showed her the baffled expression on his face.

"You didn't exactly say no either," Wells pointed out. "You just took off."

"A normal person would take that as a rejection," Clarke scoffed. "How did you even find me anyway?"

"I've been calling your phone non stop. Finally some guy named Murphy picked up and told me where I could find you," Wells said. Clarke cursed John Murphy. As far as she was concerned, this was a much worse crime than stealing her car and money.

"Maybe I should leave you two alone. Seems like you have a lot to discuss," Bellamy said, his jaw tight.

"No, Bellamy…" Clarke started.

"I'm going to check on Octavia," Bellamy interrupted, leaving Clarke and Wells standing in the doorway.

"Can I come in?" Wells asked her. Clarke sighed dramatically and stood aside so Wells could come inside.

"What are you doing here Wells?" Clarke asked as she led him to the living room.

"I came to get you and bring you back," Wells said, sitting beside her on the sofa.

"I don't want to marry you," Clarke told him flatly.

"Yeah, I got that. Thanks," Wells replied, trying to hide the hurt in his voice. "It would have been nice if you had stayed to tell me that though."

"Look, I'm sorry," Clarke sighed. She knew in her heart that deserting him like that was wrong. It didn't mean she regretted it though. "I just couldn't deal with it. Any of it. There was my mom putting pressure on me to go to college and you proposing, and I just suddenly saw my entire life mapped out in front of me. And I hated it. I don't want to spend my whole life in the same city with the same people. Go to college, get a job, get married have two kids and house. The thought of it makes me sick."

"Why didn't you just _tell_ me?" Wells questioned.

"I didn't want you to feel like you had to change your whole life for me. And besides, I still wouldn't have married you," Clarke shrugged.

"You never had any intention of being with me forever, did you?" Wells sighed. Clarke shook her head, feeling guilty at the heartbroken look on Wells' face. "I've missed you," Wells said quietly. Clarke didn't respond. How could she tell him she'd barely thought of him the entire time she'd been gone? He seemed to sense it anyway though. "Looks like you've moved on though," he said sadly. "Is it serious between you two?" he asked. Clarke shrugged.

"I don't know yet," she said.

"You should come back," Wells urged. "Everyone misses you. Your mom has been out of her mind with worry. This is the longest you've ever been gone." Clarke wasn't sure how to respond, but she was spared having to when Bellamy burst into the room. He was fully dressed now, and he had a suitcase in one hand and a piece of paper in the other.

"Octavia's gone," he gulped. He was clearly trying to remain calm but he looked frantic. "I'm going after her."

"What?" Clarke jumped up from the couch and ran over to Bellamy. "Where's she gone?" Bellamy handed her the piece of paper he was holding, which turned out to be a note from Octavia.

"God," Bellamy rubbed his head with his hand. "She's right. I am a fucking hypocrite." He turned and headed for the door then and Clarke ran after him.

"Wait! I'll come with you!" she called.

"I don't think that's a good idea," Bellamy's eyes glanced behind her and Clarke turned to see Wells standing there. "We'll talk when I get back." Clarke watched as he got into Octavia's car and drove away.

"Clarke-," Wells tried.

"Don't talk to me," Clarke snapped. She turned her attention to the letter in her hand.

 _Bellamy,_

 _Thank you for showing me exactly just how much you care about my happiness. You should know that I really do hate you. Lucky for me I'm eighteen and I make my own decisions, so Lincoln is picking me up tonight and we're going to LA. Don't bother trying to get me to come back. In case you were wondering how I snuck out, I left while you were screwing our eighteen year old maid, you fucking hypocrite._

 _Octavia._

Clarke could feel a blush spread over her entire body as she read Octavia's words, realising that Octavia must have overheard them last night. She couldn't help but feel partly responsible for Octavia's departure, and she wondered if Bellamy blamed her too.

"What does it say?" Wells asked. "Who's Octavia?" Clarke just glared at him.

"Fine, I get it. You don't want to talk to me," Wells huffed. "But I'm going to have to let Abby know where you are. I've booked a room at a motel in town. I'll stay until you're ready to talk properly." Clarke still said nothing. As far as she was concerned she'd said everything there was to be said. She watched as Wells headed for the door. "You can't run from every problem in your life, Clarke," he called over his shoulder.

"You wanna bet?" Clarke muttered under breath as she heard the door shut behind him.


	13. Breathe

**I think I only have one or two chapters left in this, so if anyone has any ideas on how to end it, speak now or forever be disappointed with whatever crappy ending I give it**.

* * *

Clarke waited three days. Three days of Wells coming over at least once a day with Clarke ignoring the doorbell and him calling her name, begging her to open up and just _talk_ to him. But she had nothing left to say, and she knew Wells was only going to try and convince her to go back home with him. He was wasting his time.

For three days Clarke anxiously paced the house, waiting for Bellamy to get home, or at least _call her._ She tried calling him a couple of times but he didn't pick up. Raven invited her over but she didn't want to leave the house in case Bellamy returned while she was out.

But she could only wait so long. She knew Wells would stay true to his word and hang around in town until Clarke gave in and talked to him. Clarke didn't know how much longer she could avoid Wells for if she stayed here, and she could only think of one other option: running away.

It wasn't that she really wanted to leave Ark Hill. She had been happier there than she had been in a long time. But she'd always known she wasn't going to stay there forever. And maybe she wanted to stay to see things through with Bellamy. She didn't know what it was between them, and she wanted to find out. She was fairly certain she was falling in love with him, if she wasn't in love with him already. Bellamy hadn't really given her a hint to how he felt about her. Maybe for him it was just a fling, and she'd just look dumb if she lingered around, hoping he'd fall in love with her. If she stayed she knew she'd eventually tell him how she felt, and she wasn't sure she was ready for his reaction. What is he didn't love her back? What if he did?

She didn't want to wait around much longer, but she knew she owed it to Bellamy to tell him she was leaving and say goodbye. She missed the call when he rang on the fourth day, but he left a message.

" _Clarke, it's Bellamy. I found Octavia. Call me when you get this_." It was short and to the point. She called him back immediately. She felt a weird mixture of relief and anxiety when he picked up the phone and she heard his voice through the receiver.

"Hi," he said. "Sorry I didn't call sooner. I didn't want to risk being on the phone if Octavia called," he told her.

"It's fine," Clarke replied. "So you found her? Is she coming home?"

"I haven't talked to her yet. I know she doesn't want to see me so I was hoping I could talk to Lincoln first. I know he's a reasonable man. Unlike me," Bellamy snorted self pityingly.

"I'm really sorry about all this. If I'd known-," Clarke started.

"It's not your fault, Clarke. I shouldn't have put you in that position. I've been a complete dick and there's no excuse for it," he sighed. "Anyway, I'm staying here until I can sort things out with O. I have no idea how long that will be."

"Okay," Clarke said, her heart beating faster at the thought of telling him she was leaving. She waited for him to say something else, to give her any indication that he might love her too. She knew she'd stay in a heartbeat if he gave her even an inkling.

"Um…" Bellamy started hesitantly. "Listen, I know I said you can't be my maid anymore… but you can still stay in my house until I get back if you want," he offered. Her heart sank. It wasn't what she needed to hear at all. From those words all she could deduce was that he didn't need her to leave right away, but that he expected her to leave eventually. And it was good while it lasted, but she figured now was as good a time as any to get out of his hair.

"Actually, I have to leave soon. Tomorrow," she told him.

"Oh," was all he said. "So soon?"

"Yeah," she assured him. "Now that Wells has tracked me down… it's time to move on," she nodded, though he couldn't see her. Her throat felt constricted and she wasn't sure why she felt so upset about leaving someone who clearly didn't really need her.

"Right," Bellamy said shortly. Was he annoyed at her? "Well I guess I should wish you the best."

"Thanks."

"Yeah. Anyway I should go. I'll see you. Or I guess I won't," Bellamy said flatly. "Goodbye, Clarke."

"Goodbye."

* * *

She packed her things that night so she could leave early the next morning, before Wells had a chance to drop around. She didn't bother telling anyone she was leaving. Her only friends were Raven and Maya, and they weren't really that close after all. She doubted they'd miss her, if they even noticed her absence.

She packed the car quickly and let her gaze linger on the front door for a moment. She drank in the image of the façade, trying to capture it in her mind, knowing this would be the last time she'd see it. Except, as much as she had grown to love the old house, she knew it wasn't really a building she was sorry to be leaving. It was almost like she was waiting for Bellamy to walk out and beg her not to go. Except he wasn't there, and even if he was she doubted he would try to stop her this time. He hadn't sounded too concerned about her leaving on the phone. She just wished she could see him one last time.

She only hesitated a moment longer before getting in the car and heading off. She tried to occupy her mind with thoughts of where she was headed (though she didn't know where that was), but she could only think of Bellamy, and how she'd likely never see him again. She felt like she could hardly breathe and for the first time she truly questioned her decision to go. Maybe she should have just worked things out with Wells. But then she thought about what he wanted from her and she knew she could never give him what he needed. Even if she went with him, she would never be the kind of wife he wanted her to be, or even the kind of friend. She knew he just wanted her to be happy, and she was never going to be happy in Sacramento at medical school with her mother hovering over her shoulder, watching her every move.

Except she wasn't happy now, either. She had been for those magical few weeks in Ark Hill. But already, only a few miles from the town, she began to feel like it didn't even exist. Like it was some imaginary town she'd dreamt about, like her whole life there had been a strange illusion, a temporary respite from the real world.

An ugly sob escaped her as she drove away, and before long tears were streaming down her face.

She went east this time, driving all day and well into the night, only stopping for gas and food, and eventually checked into a shady looking motel in Amarillo, Texas. She was pretty sure no one would ever find her there. The thought made her feel relieved, and yet somehow entirely lonely and she fell asleep with her tears drying on her cheeks.

* * *

Her phone woke her the next morning, ringing loudly from the nightstand. She looked at the screen to see who was calling. Raven.

"Raven?" she answered.

"Hey, I was wondering if you want to catch a movie tonight?" she asked. Clarke hesitated a moment.

"I can't," she said finally.

"Oh, alright, how about tomorrow?" Raven continued.

"Raven…" Clarke said slowly, and she suddenly felt extremely guilty for leaving without telling her friends. "I can't go ever. I'm… I'm not in Ark Hill anymore."

"You're not?" Raven asked in confusion.

"No, I… I left yesterday," Clarke told her.

"Well, where are you? Did you go back home?" Raven asked.

"No. It doesn't matter where I am. I had to go. My ex boyfriend found me and I had to get away," Clarke informed her. There was silence on the other end of the phone. "Raven?"

"What about me?" Raven finally said.

"What?" Clarke asked, surprised by the question.

"Why didn't you tell me you were going? Why didn't you say goodbye?" Raven asked, sounding hurt.

"I… I don't know," Clarke stammered. Why hadn't she said goodbye?

"What about Maya? What about Bellamy and Octavia?" Raven prodded.

"I told Bellamy. He's trying to get Octavia to come back to Ark Hill. She ran off to LA after I slept with Bellamy…" Clarke rambled, trying to find some kind of reasonable explanation for her disappearance.

"You _slept_ with Bellamy?" Raven exclaimed. "When did all this happen?"

"A few days ago…" Clarke muttered.

"A few days ago," Raven repeated flatly, before falling silent again.

"Raven?" Clarke said cautiously.

"I thought we were friends Clarke," Raven said bitterly.

"We are," Clarke assured her.

"Seems like those are the kind of things you tell your friends. And normally if you're skipping town for good you say goodbye to your friends," Raven snapped. "I don't know if you knew Clarke but I didn't really have any close friends in Ark Hill before you came along."

"I'm sorry, I didn't -," Clarke tried but Raven cut her off.

"No, you don't get to be sorry. You can't just run off whenever it suits you," Raven spat.

"Well, you did it," Clarke reminded her.

"Clarke, I didn't have a single person in the world who gave a shit about whether I lived or died. Running away from my abusive mother was the only choice for me. But you have people who _care_ about you, about what happens to you! I don't think you realise how much you could hurt people. You're so fucking selfish, Clarke," Raven said harshly and Clarke flinched at her words.

"Raven…" Clarke tried again.

"Have a nice life, Clarke," Raven snorted before ending the call. Clarke burst into tears again, the weight of Raven's words falling heavy on her shoulders. The worst part was she knew it was all true.


	14. Maybe

**Someday**

 **When we're at the same place**

 **When we're on the same road**

 **When it's okay to hold my hand, without feeling lost**

 **Without all the excuses**

 **When it's just because, you love me, you let me, you need me, then maybe.**

 **\- Maybe, Kelly Clarkson**

* * *

The house was eerily empty when Bellamy finally arrived home after his trip to LA. He pushed the door open and entered the darkened foyer, and it should have been a relief to be back home after a week away, but instead it felt like a stranger's house. It was a big house, but it had always felt full, even when it was just him and Octavia. But Octavia was gone now. She hadn't forgiven him.

Bellamy had made contact with Lincoln and Lincoln had been the bigger person and said he'd talk to Octavia, when Bellamy knew if he'd been in Lincoln's shoes he would have refused just to spite him. But Lincoln spoke to Octavia, or at least Bellamy had every reason to believe he did. But when he called the next day, he told Bellamy that Octavia didn't want to speak to him. Bellamy had kind of expected that, so he asked Lincoln to set up a meeting with Octavia anyway.

"I don't know, Bellamy. I don't want to trick her into doing something she doesn't want to do," Lincoln said hesitantly. Bellamy cursed him inwardly for being a better person than Bellamy himself had ever been or would ever be.

"I get that, I really do, but I need to speak to her," Bellamy begged. Octavia needed to know how sorry he was.

"I don't think that's such a good idea," Lincoln argued. Bellamy groaned in frustration. He knew this situation was all of his own making, but it didn't stop him from feeling a surge of annoyance towards Lincoln. "Look, Bellamy, Octavia is really pissed right now. It was her idea to run off, not mine. Just give her some time to cool off and then you can try again," Lincoln suggested. Bellamy sighed. He knew Lincoln was right, but he didn't like it.

"Will you at least give her a message for me?" Bellamy asked.

"Sure," Lincoln agreed.

"Just… tell her she was right. I am a hypocrite. I was wrong, and I'm really sorry. And I want to support her relationship with you. And tell her she doesn't need to worry about me and Clarke because… Clarke's gone," Bellamy said, trying not to dwell on the last part too much. He couldn't think about Clarke just yet.

"Alright, I'll tell her," Lincoln said.

"And Lincoln?" Bellamy said before Lincoln hung up the phone. "I want to apologise to you too. I'm sorry. And thanks for not hating me."

"Don't worry about it. I guess I kind of understand," Lincoln assured him. "I'll give Octavia your message."

Bellamy could only assume Lincoln had passed the message on, but he'd heard nothing from Octavia regardless. And now he was back in this big empty house, alone. He headed up to his room and stopped in the doorway, staring at his bed, the sheets still a mess from his night with Clarke a week ago. He swallowed, trying to dislodge the lump that had formed in his throat when he thought about it.

He dumped his bag on the floor and sagged onto the end of his bed, dropping his head into his hands. Maybe he should have tried to stop her from going. He hadn't wanted her to go, but when she told him on the phone it seemed like she already had her mind made up. It would have been selfish to try and make her stay when she clearly didn't want to. He only wished he'd a chance to talk to her properly before she left, face to face, so he could tell her how he felt. It didn't feel right to tell her on the phone. But now it was too late. She was gone, god knows where, and he'd likely never see her again.

* * *

Bellamy was surprised to find Wells on his front doorstep the next morning and stared at the man in confusion.

"Bellamy, right?" Wells said. Bellamy nodded, his face still screwed up, trying to analyse why Wells was at his house when Clarke was long gone. "Can I speak to Clarke?" Bellamy stared at him a bit longer before responding.

"She's not here," he informed Wells.

"Damn," Wells swore. "I thought she might have gone when her car wasn't here yesterday."

"Have you been stalking her?" Bellamy asked suspiciously.

"If I'd been stalking her don't you think I'd know where she was?" Wells pointed out. "Where is she?"

"She didn't say where she was going. Just took off," Bellamy shrugged. Wells shook his head in disappointment. "You two were engaged?" Bellamy asked. Wells made a noncommittal gesture.

"Not really I guess," he admitted. "We were high school sweethearts. I proposed. She said she'd think about it and then she was gone. Didn't tell anyone where she was going or why. She hates facing her problems," Wells chuckled half heartedly, but Bellamy could tell Clarke had really hurt him. That made two of them.

"She has a habit of leaving," Bellamy guessed.

"Yeah," Wells agreed bitterly. "She seemed really into you though. I'm surprised she left."

"I guess you can never really predict what people are going to do," Bellamy mused. Wells nodded and the two men got lost in their own memories of Clarke for a moment.

"I should go," Wells said finally. "Nice to meet you, Bellamy. Sorry about Clarke."

"Yeah, same to you," Bellamy repeated the sentiment and Wells got in his car and drove away, presumably back to Sacramento, now that Clarke had disappeared. Bellamy admired Wells for trying. For laying everything he had on the line for the person he loved. It made him want to find Clarke and confess everything. But he didn't know where she was, and he had a farm to take care of and a house to sell. He did have her phone number however, and he figured he had nothing much else left to lose.

* * *

Clarke couldn't bring herself to pick up the phone when Bellamy's name flashed on the screen. She was worried he was just going to yell at her like Raven did, and in all honesty he probably had every right to, the way she'd left. So she let it ring out, holding her breath the whole time.

She was still in the motel in Amarillo, having made no decisions to either move on or go back. And she had seriously considered both options, and it was only partly because she wasn't really a huge fan of Texas. Raven's words had really struck a chord with her. Her friend (if she could still call her that) was right. She had been selfish. She'd hurt Wells and her mother and god knows who else when she left Sacramento, and now she'd hurt Wells again, and Raven, and Maya and maybe even Bellamy. And now she was alone and she had no one to blame but herself.

Her phone buzzed, letting her know Bellamy had left a message. She hesitated a moment before picking up her phone and listening to whatever he had to say.

" _Hey Clarke, it's Bellamy. I guess I wasn't really expecting you to pick up. I wanted to tell you I spoke to Lincoln and Octavia won't talk to me. I spoke to Wells today and told him you'd gone. I think he's headed back to Sacramento now. And well, uh… that's all I had to say_ ," there was a pause then and Clarke expected to hear the call end but instead Bellamy kept talking.

" _No, actually, I'm lying. There was something else I wanted to tell you. I guess there's no other way to say it so I'm just going to, uh, go for it I guess. I love you. I should have told you sooner. I was going to tell you when I got back but then you said you were leaving. It doesn't really seem right to say over the phone, but I figure I'm not going to get another chance. I don't even know if you'll listen to this message,_ " he laughed a little sadly. " _It's probably best this way anyway. I get why you had to leave. We're at totally different stages in our lives. Maybe- maybe some day… when we're at the same place… when you've found yourself, maybe we'll meet again and things can be different. Maybe it's just wishful thinking. Anyway. I miss you._ "

He hung up then and Clarke was left with the phone against her ear, her mouth hanging open. She was stunned. It was the complete opposite of the hate message she had been expecting. He _loved_ her. It made her want to drive back to Ark Hill as fast as humanly possible. But she knew she had to be sensible now. Think it through. She couldn't go racing back there unless she was sure she was going to stay this time.

Bellamy was right. They were at different stages in their lives. He was nearly thirty, and she was only eighteen. She'd seen nothing of the world, and she'd only ever been with Wells. And yet, she knew that stuff didn't matter to her, because she felt like she could only ever be happy if she was with Bellamy.

She made a decision then. She just… wouldn't decide yet. She had other people she'd let down, other than Bellamy, and they deserved apologies and explanations too. So she packed her bags and threw them in her car and made a start on the long drive back to Sacramento. She was finally going to face her mother.

* * *

 **Thank you everyone who commented, I'm feeling very inspired for this story at the moment so hopefully I'll have it finished within the week!**


	15. Home

**Last chapter finally.**

* * *

Someone pressed the doorbell and the ringing echoed throughout the big house, reminding Bellamy that he was all alone. His heart stopped for a second when he considered who might be paying him a visit at this time of night. His mind flew to Clarke immediately. She must have received his message and now she was here to confess her love and they'd live happily ever after. Only when he opened the door, it wasn't Clarke. It was Octavia.

"O?" Bellamy choked out incredulously.

"Are you going to take my bag or what?" Octavia snapped. Bellamy grabbed her bag from her and she marched past him into the house.

"What are you doing here? I thought you hated me," Bellamy reminded her. "And why did you ring the doorbell?"

"I still hate you a little bit," Octavia informed him, swinging around to face him, her hair almost flicking him in the face. "Lincoln gave me your message. He told me Clarke's gone."

"Is that the reason you left? Do you hate her that much?" Bellamy asked.

"Don't be an idiot. I left because I hate you. I'm back because I love you," Octavia rolled her eyes.

"You're not making any sense," Bellamy said in confusion.

"I'm still really mad at you Bell. But I know you love her and I figured you could use some company until you can get over her," Octavia finally explained.

"So you're not back for good?" Bellamy clarified. Octavia shook her head.

"I'm still living in LA with Lincoln. Think you can deal with that?" Octavia said, raising her eyebrows.

"Yeah. As long as I still get to see you," Bellamy nodded with a small smile.

"Good. Now, let's get drunk and forget about Clarke," Octavia declared, pulling a bottle of tequila out of her bag.

* * *

Abby was surprised to say the least when she opened the door to find Clarke standing there.

"Clarke?" she managed to choke out as she stood frozen in the doorway.

"Hi mom," Clarke replied with a small smile. Abby stood still for another second, like she couldn't quite believe it was really her daughter standing in front of her. Clarke couldn't really blame her.

"Can I come in or…?" Clarke prompted before her mother burst into tears, pulling her into a tight hug. Clarke reluctantly returned the hug, and hoped her mother didn't notice the tears forming in her own eyes.

"Abby?" Clarke heard Marcus call. "Who is it?" Clarke surreptitiously brushed the water from her eyes as her mother finally pulled away.

"Come on," Abby pulled Clarke inside. She led Clarke to the living room where Marcus was sitting drinking coffee.

"Clarke!" Marcus exclaimed in surprise when they walked into the room. He looked understandably confused but he said nothing, only glancing between Abby and Clarke before crossing the room to give Clarke an awkward hug.

"Coffee?" he asked when he pulled away.

"Thanks," Clarke nodded. Abby sat down on the couch and Clarke followed suit. A tense silence filled the room ad Clarke fiddled with the sleeve of her shirt, unable to look at her mother. Now that the initial shock of Clarke's return had subsided, Clarke knew her mother probably just wanted to know where the hell her daughter had been and what she'd been doing, but obviously she wasn't game to ask just yet, perhaps afraid she'd just drive Clarke away again.

But Clarke was ready to get the conversation over with. She wasn't planning on staying in Sacramento long. She's had a lot of time to think on the drive from Amarillo, and she knew one thing for certain, and that was that she didn't belong there anymore. And she was pretty sure she knew where she did belong.

"It's okay, mom," Clarke sighed. "You can ask." Abby didn't bother pretending not to know what Clarke was talking about.

"I was beginning to think I'd never see you again," Abby whispered. "Where on earth have you been?"

"I would've thought Wells would have told you," Clarke said wryly.

"I haven't heard from in days," Abby informed her. Clarke was a little surprised. She had expected Wells to sell her out, but even after all she'd done to him he was still on her side it seemed.

"I was in a place called Ark Hill. Then Amarillo for a couple of days," Clarke told her mother.

"Texas?" Abby screwed up her nose.

"Ark Hill is in California," Clarke said.

"I've never heard of it," Abby said, a little suspiciously. Clarke shot her a look through narrowed eyes. "But I'm sure it's a lovely place," Abby amended, forcing a smile. "So, you're back just in time to start the semester," she said brightly.

"Is that all you care about?" Clarke cried in frustration.

"Well, I just assumed that's why you were back. And now you and Wells-," Abby prattled, but Clarke cut her off before she could really get started.

"Mom!" she snapped. "Wells and I are done, got it? And I'm not here because I want to go to college. I don't even know what I want to do for a living!"

"That's why you need to go to college. So you will realise what you were meant to do," Abby informed her.

"Which is become a doctor?" Clarke guessed.

"Well…" Abby trailed off, but Clarke already knew the answer. "If you didn't come back to go to college or marry Wells, why did you come back?" Clarke could see Abby's anger starting to show now, though she did a good job of hiding it.

"I thought I should let you know I'm alright. Give you an explanation before I go back," Clarke shrugged.

" _Go back_?" Abby hissed incredulously. "Clarke, this is your home! This is where all your family and friends are. And you want to go and live in some god forsaken little town and end up working as a barmaid with three illegitimate children?"

"Why don't you trust me?" Clarke yelled, standing up. "And why can't you let me make my own decisions? You haven't even asked me why I left in the first place, which just proves you don't give a shit about me at all."

"You're throwing your life away Clarke," Abby warned, completely disregarding everything Clarke had just said. Or maybe she hadn't even heard it. Clarke gave a snort of laughter then, surprising Abby and herself.

"Thanks, mom," Clarke grinned. "Thank you for giving me the clarity I needed. Thank you for showing me I'm making the right decision. Goodbye," Clarke turned and strode from the room then, and Abby ran after her.

"Clarke, wait!" she called. "Come back. Let's talk about this."

"It's too late mom. I'll call you when I get there to let you know I'm alright," Clarke called back.

"Where are you going?" Abby asked, though Clarke knew she already knew.

"Home," Clarke whispered to herself, striding out the front door and back to her car. She knew her mother would come round eventually, and right now, Abby's approval wasn't what she needed. She'd done what she'd needed to, and now it was time to do what she wanted.

* * *

"What are you doing here?" Wick raised an eyebrow at her when she walked into the shop.

"I'm here to see Raven," Clarke told him.

"She's mad at you," Wick warned her.

"I know," Clarke sighed. "Can I see her or what?"

"Yeah, but don't blame me if she throws a wrench at your head," Wick chuckled. Clarke rolled her eyes and walked past his office towards the back where Raven presumably was working.

"Raven?" Clarke called out, hoping Raven wouldn't run at the sound of her voice. She was greeted with silence and she sighed, wondering why she even bothered after the scolding Raven has given her over the phone.

"You've got a lot of nerve coming back here," Raven finally spoke, coming out from behind a four wheel drive that was parked there.

"I guess I do," Clarke agreed. Raven pursed her lips and waited for Clarke to go on. Clarke gave a heavy sigh before continuing. "Raven, you were right. I've been completely selfish and a total bitch. I should've said goodbye. I know it's no excuse but I just wasn't thinking straight and I get it if you don't forgive me, but I'm back now, hopefully for good, and I'm really sorry," Clarke said.

"Huh," Raven snorted. "Well, I guess that's a pretty good apology. But it doesn't make up for what you did."

"I know," Clarke nodded. "But, you know, since I'm sticking around, you can probably find other ways for me to make it up to you," she suggested, daring to give Raven a sheepish grin. Raven rolled her eyes and suppressed her own smile.

"Fine," she agreed grudgingly. "But you're not forgiven yet." Clarke grinned brightly and Raven rolled her eyes again before pulling Clarke into a hug. "I'm glad you're back," she whispered.

"Me too," Clarke returned. "And I'm really glad to see you, but there's someone else I have to see too," she continued, pulling out of the hug.

"You didn't go and see him _first_?" Raven exclaimed. "You must really love me."

"You know it," Clarke laughed.

"Well, hurry up and get out of here!" Raven urged her, and Clarke said goodbye to Raven and Wick before heading to Bellamy's house.

Butterflies filled her stomach as she drove up the driveway to the house and she didn't really know what she was going to say to him. She'd prepared her speech to Raven on the drive down, but hadn't managed to come up with anything equally as heartfelt when it came to Bellamy. After everything he'd said in his message, she felt like she needed to be able to put everything she felt for him into perfectly constructed sentences so that it would play out like a cheesy romance movie. But no perfectly constructed sentences had come to her, and now she was at his house with nothing to say.

It was Octavia who opened the door anyway.

"Octavia?" Clarke said in surprise.

"Clarke?" Octavia replied, clearly just as surprised.

"I thought you were…" Clarke trailed off.

"I thought the same about you," Octavia said, raising an eyebrow.

"Is Bellamy here? Can I see him?" Clarke asked.

"He's here, but he's busy at the moment," Octavia told her. Clarke was sceptical and Octavia could see it written on her face. "No, he really is busy. He's selling the house. He's in his study now, negotiating."

"Oh," Clarke nodded. She was a little sad that the house had to go, and she assumed the farm too. On the drive back she'd conjured up a daydream of living in the mansion with Bellamy, helping him with the peaches. But as long as he could forgive her for leaving and still wanted to be with her, she didn't really care where they lived. "He's not going through a real estate agent?" Clarke asked Octavia as Octavia let her inside.

"No, he didn't need to. Someone made him an offer before he'd even decided whether or not he wanted to sell. I believe you know the buyer, actually," Octavia said.

"I do?" Clarke said, bewildered. She ran through every person she could think of in Ark Hill but came up short. She heard footsteps at the top of the stairs, signifying the negotiations were over. She and Octavia looked up to see Bellamy coming down and…

" _Wells_?" Clarke burst out. " _You're_ buying this house?" In hindsight she probably should have greeted Bellamy first, but she was too stunned to act appropriately.

"Sure am," he smiled. He didn't look at all surprised to see her. Bellamy, on the other hand, looked like he was about to faint.

"Why would you want to live in Ark Hill?" she accused.

"I don't. I thought it would be a good investment," Wells informed her. "I'm going to rent it out."

"To _who?_ " Clarke continued to be utterly stunned by the turn of events.

"To me," Bellamy finally spoke.

"To you," Clarke repeated dumbly and anything else she had been going to say to Wells died in her throat as she finally remembered why she was there. Her face heated with embarrassment and Wells cleared his throat awkwardly.

"I should get going. I'll be in touch," he said to Bellamy.

"And I have a really important thing I have to buy at the supermarket," Octavia lied and the two of them hurried out the front door. As the door thumped closed behind them, silence filled the foyer as Clarke and Bellamy stared at each other for a moment.

"Clarke," Bellamy started but Clarke quickly cut him off.

"I love you," she blurted. To hell with epic speeches. "I love you," she repeated, and it was easier the second time. There was barely a pause before she was in Bellamy's arms and he was kissing her, and she was kissing him back like her life depended on it.

"I'm sorry I left," she managed to get out as she pulled away slightly to take a breath. "I just… thought you didn't want me to stay. After we… you know…."

"Had sex?" Bellamy smirked against her mouth.

"Right," Clarke confirmed, grateful he couldn't see her blush when his face was so close to hers. "And I thought you blamed me for Octavia leaving."

"No way. That was all on me. And as for the other thing, I'd like to do that again sometime," he chuckled. "Or a lot more times." He grabbed her ass and hoisted her up so she had to lock her legs around his waist, making her shriek and giggle. "Move in with me?" he said seriously.

"Of course," Clarke smiled leaning in to kiss him again.

"You can sleep in my room this time," he told her, brushing his nose against hers gently.

"I suppose I have Wells to thank for that," Clarke said.

"We should probably thank him. But can you not spoil the mood by mentioning your ex? I'd kind of like to take you to our room now, if that's alright with you," Bellamy laughed. Clarke nodded and Bellamy carried her upstairs and set her down on his bed. "Welcome home, Clarke."

* * *

 **So I hope you enjoyed this. I don't know if anyone was actually still reading this, but this is the end anyway.**


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